The return of hockey is right around the corner and for every club in National Hockey League, it'll start next week as they open up their respective rookie camps and participate in various prospect tournaments.
For the Montreal Canadiens, who have one of the top prospect groups in the league, they'll be participating the NHL Prospect Challenge, which will be hosted by the Ottawa Senators in Gatineau, Quebec. Joining the Canadiens and Senators in Gatineau will be the Toronto Maple Leafs and Winnipeg Jets.
In one week, the Canadiens will open up their 2026 Rookie Camp with an on-ice session in the morning. Fans have been waiting to see who will be attending this year's camp and on Friday afternoon, the Canadiens unveiled their 23-man roster.
Montreal Canadiens Unveil 23-Man Roster for 2026 Rookie Camp & Prospect Challenge
Before sharing who will be participating at this year's Rookie Camp and tournament, it's important to note that prospects playing in the NCAA, KHL and Europe are never in attendance. That means Canadiens fans won't see Michael Hage, Alexander Zharovsky, Gleb Pugachyov and even Carlos Handel, the latter of whom signed with Kolner Haie in Germany's top division, the DEL.
As mentioned, Montreal's 2026 Rookie Camp roster features a total of 23 players, seven of whom have been invited on a tryout basis. The most notable forward fans will recognize is Tyler Thorpe, who stood out during the team's main training camp last September. Thorpe spent the 2025-26 season with the Laval Rocket where he registered 16 points (four goals, 12 assists) in 68 games.
Also among those in the forward group is Kody Dupuis, son of Stanley Cup champion Pascal Dupuis, as well as Moscow, Russia native Aleksandr Legkov, who spent last season in the FPHL, which is one step below the ECHL. Legkov had 38 goals and 93 points with the Danbury Hat Tricks & Pee Dee IceCats. The 22-year-old signed an AHL contract with Laval after attending Montreal's Development Camp in early July.
Meanwhile on the blue line, the most notable name for fans is 2024 fourth round pick Owen Protz. Protz is making the jump to the professional ranks this fall after spending four years in the Ontario Hockey League with the Sudbury Wolves and Brantford Bulldogs. Joining Protz on the blue line is 2026 Memorial Cup champion Andrew MacNiel and Luke Mittelstadt, younger brother of Boston Bruins forward Casey Mittelstadt.
In between the pipes, the Canadiens have brought three goaltenders to this year's Rookie Camp, including Mikus Vecvanags, who represented Latvia at the 2026 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship in Minnesota.
Montreal Canadiens 2026 Rookie Camp Roster
* - invited on tryout basis.
Forwards: Dillan Bentley, Alexander Donovan*, Kody Dupuis*, Aleksandr Legkov, Braydon McCallum*, Josh Nadeau, Mavrick Rousseau-Hamel*, Thomas Rousseau*, Wesley Royston, Tyler Thorpe, Parker Trottier, Alexey Vlasov*, Braidy Wassilyn*.
Defensemen: Jean-Samuel Daigneault, Aiden Dubinsky, Brayden Klimpke, Andrew MacNiel, Kale McCallum, Luke Mittelstadt, Owen Protz.
Goaltenders: Francesco Lapenna, Arseni Radkov, Mikus Vecvanags.
The Canadiens' rookies will take on the Winnipeg Jets on Saturday, September 12th at 1 pm ET and then the Ottawa Senators on Sunday, September 13th at 6 pm ET before heading back to Montreal for the final on-ice session of camp on Tuesday, September 15th.