Karl Alzner, Canadiens Reportedly Agree to 5-Year Contract

The Montreal Canadiens and veteran defenseman Karl Alzner have reportedly reached an agreement on a five-year contract.         

As TSN Hockey's Aaron Ward reported Saturday, Alzner's deal with the Canadiens will pay him approximately $4.5 million over five years. Ward's colleague Darren Dreger noted the contract is worth a little more than $23 million total.

How someone views this deal depends on whether they focus on the old-school or new-school way of thinking.

Alzner is a stay-at-home defenseman in every sense of the term. He's scored just 117 points in 591 career games since the Washington Capitals made him the fifth overall pick in the 2007 NHL draft. His highest point total for an entire season is 21.

His value comes from things like understanding defensive assignments, blocking shots and being one of the league's most durable players.

The 28-year-old British Columbia native ranked 12th among blueliners during the 2016-17 season with 162 blocked shots. That makes him particularly valuable when it comes to killing penalties, which figures to become a key part of his role in Montreal.

On the injury front, he has appeared in every regular-season game since the start of the 2010-11 campaign.

Alzner did miss some time during the Caps' 2017 playoff run because of an upper-body injury, and Stephen Whyno of the Associated Press discussed the impact:

Those who didn't look at the defender's absence as a major game-changer for Washington likely lean more heavily on advanced stats.

Alzner ranked seventh of eight Washington defensemen who played at least 100 minutes last season in Corsi percentage relative to the team, per HockeyAnalysis.com.

Meanwhile, Isabelle Khurshudyan of the Washington Post noted the longtime Caps stalwart said during the team's postseason journey he knew staying in the nation's capital wasn't a guarantee.

"I mean, I'm realistic, and I know it's pretty rare for someone to stay in one place their entire career," Alzner said. "So, I'm making the best of it because this is a heck of a team, on and off the ice."

It's no surprise Alzner received a more lucrative contract than the Capitals were likely capable of offering given their need to add depth to their roster. The bigger question is whether the high-profile addition can live up to his new deal with the Canadiens.

He's going to take up residence in Montreal's top four defensively and should also be on the club's top penalty-killing unit. The deal is going to get a mixed reaction from within a fanbase, but the front office felt he was worth the investment to bolster the defense corps.