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Report: Habs, Alzner agree to five-year deal

Washington Capitals v Philadelphia Flyers - Game Three

PHILADELPHIA, PA - APRIL 18: Karl Alzner #27 of the Washington Capitals takes the puck in the third period against the Philadelphia Flyers in Game Three of the Eastern Conference First Round during the 2016 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Wells Fargo Center on April 18, 2016 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.The Washington Capitals defeated the Philadelphia Flyers 6-1. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

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It looks as though Montreal has made a big play in restocking its blueline.

Per former TSN analyst Aaron Ward, the Habs have agreed to a five-year deal with former Caps d-man Karl Alzner, one with “roughly” a $4.5 million cap hit.

Should that estimate prove accurate, it’s a $22.5 million commitment from Montreal.

That this deal came together shouldn’t be a big surprise, as there was interest from both sides. Earlier this week, Alzner said he would welcome signing in Montreal. And from the Habs’ perspective, major holes needed to be filled on the back end following the departures of Alexei Emelin, Nathan Beaulieu and Mikhail Sergachev.

It was also pretty clear Alzner was going to score big in free agency.

The last contract he signed in Washington was a club-friendly deal that paid him $11.2 million over four years. That’s a cap hit of just $2.8 million for a guy that plays top-four minutes against tough competition.

This time around, he wanted not just a pay bump, but some long-term security as well.

“I will wait to see my options, but I am only 28 years old and I can tell you that I would like to get a long-term contract,” Alzner told Le Journal de Montréal (translated). “It is always attractive for a player to be able to settle in the same city for a long time. It would be my dream to sign a long-term agreement.”

Though Alzner doesn’t have much offensive upside -- he’s never scored more than 21 points in a single season -- Alzner is a pretty steady, consistent and durable guy. He hasn’t missed a regular season contest since the 2009-10 campaign, and has averaged 20:12 TOI per night over his career with the Caps.