Matt D'Agostini

Matt D'Agostini was already with his new teammates on Wednesday as his old teammates were on the way to San Jose. Find out what he had to say about being dealt as he spoke with stltoday.com.

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After Max Pacioretty, it was Matt D'Agostini's turn to be sent to the Hamilton Bulldogs on Sunday. At the same time, the Canadiens announced the recall of Ben Maxwell.

D'Agostini is in Hamilton on a conditioning stint that he agreed to, meaning he does not have to clear waivers. The stint can last a maximum of two weeks. Pacioretty was told of the demotion Saturday night and is already on his way to Hamilton, soon to be joined by D'Agostini. Maxwell is expected to arrive in Florida Sunday night and gives the team the minimum 20 players with Paul Mara staying in Montreal because of an upper-body injury.

Maxwell, who will be 22 in March, was the Canadiens' second-round draft choice, 49th overall, in 2006.

Last season, the 6'1", 195-pound centre had 22 goals and 36 assists with the Bulldogs. This season, he has 11 goals and 23 assists.

Hockeysfuture.com rates Maxwell as the Canadiens' best prospect. The web site quotes Cory Clouston, who coached Maxwell in Kootenay and went on to the Senators:

 “Depending on who we’re playing, whether it’s a road game or at home, it kind of varies who else he might play with. He’s a key guy for us because when you play teams with three good lines, Ben will be matched up with somebody who has a real good physical presence. Ben is a guy who will make things difficult for opponents. He generally responds quite well in the physical department.”

An interesting, enlightening Q&A with Matt D'Agostini by Matt Godbout, one of our friends at habsworld.net, sent to us by the site's chief editor, Brian La Rose.

And with the clock turned back a bit, a nice piece here on former Canadiens defenceman Terry Harper, by Dennis Kane.

Then spin by this typically good read on Harper (with Ted Harris, one of my favourite Habs as a kid) by Robert Lefebvre.

Thanks to all for their nice work during the dog days of summer.

The Canadiens have signed Matt D'Agostini to a  one-year deal.

He was the last restricted free agent on general manager Bob Gainey's agenda. He had 12 goals and nine assists last season in 53 games after being recalled from the Hamilton Bulldogs in November.

Details to come.

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(News release) – The Montreal Canadiens announced tonight that forward Matt D’Agostini has been recalled from the Hamilton Bulldogs of the American Hockey League. He will join the team on Friday morning, and will attend the club’s practice at Verizon Center in Washington.

D’Agostini, 22, leads the Bulldogs in scoring, and ranks 3rd in the AHL with 25 points in 20 games (14 goals, 11 assists). He leads the club in goals (14), powerplay goals (5) and shots on goal (64). He also served 16 penalty minutes.

D’Agostini (6’00, 200 pounds), a right winger from Sault-Ste-Marie, Ontario was selected in the sixth round by the Canadiens, 190th overall in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft. He played his first NHL game with the Canadiens during the 2007-08 season.

After last night's game, the Canadiens sent just three players to Hamilton (figuratively speaking; they're not actually leaving for Hamilton tonight):

Ben Maxwell

Matt D'Agostini

Greg Stewart.

The rest of the prospects, including Max Pacioretty, and Yannick Weber, will head up North to Tremblant with the team for their two-day camp in Ste-Jovite.

Matt D'Agostini remembers being among the first cuts in his first two training camps.

He's glad to still be here, and hopes he can open more eyes in the remaining games.