July 1st saw Matt Duchene head to Nashville, Corey Perry and Joe Pavelski move on to Dallas, and Artemi Panarin became the highest paid winger in the NHL after signing with the New York Rangers. However, the Montreal Canadiens stole the show that day after trying to offer sheet Sebastian Aho.
The game of ‘he said, she said,’ quickly became with Marc Bergevin assuring the public that Aho intended on becoming a member on the Habs. On the other end of the spectrum, Don Waddell shared his belief that Aho’s camp used Bergevin to get a more advantageous contract after initially being offered an eight-year deal with a $6 million contract.