A lone figure stands beneath the bright lights of the Bell Centre, his gaze lingering on the iconic Canadiens logo stitched across the ice. For Phillip Danault, the echo of the crowd’s roar is more than just background noise—it’s a memory, a longing, a question that refuses to fade. Somewhere in the stands, perhaps, a fan still wears his jersey, the number 24 a silent testament to chapters both closed and unfinished.

The scene is almost cinematic: Danault, now clad in the black and silver of Los Angeles, skating through a season that has been anything but kind. Zero goals, five assists, and a storm of rumors swirling around his name. Yet, as trade whispers grow louder, a different kind of story begins to take shape—a story not of statistics, but of hearts, history, and the possibility of homecoming.

It’s easy, from a distance, to see only the numbers: 32 years old, $5.5 million per season, a contract that stretches into 2027. But beneath the surface, the tale of Phillip Danault and the Montreal Canadiens is woven with tension, emotion, and a sense of unfinished business. The summer of 2021 is still fresh in the minds of many—when Danault, after a season of grit and sacrifice, packed his bags for California, leaving behind a city that had embraced him as one of its own.

Few remember just how charged those final days were. The negotiations, the offers, the heartbreak of arbitration scheduled just before his wedding. For Danault, it wasn’t about the fans or the locker room—it was about a single, strained relationship with then-general manager Marc Bergevin. The bridges, it seemed, were scorched, but not entirely destroyed.

Now, with the Canadiens searching desperately for stability at center, the idea of a reunion is more than just idle speculation. It’s a whisper that grows louder with every game, every missed opportunity, every reminder of what Danault once brought to the ice: defensive reliability, quiet leadership, and the kind of two-way play that anchors a team’s identity.

But the real intrigue lies in what hasn’t been said. Behind closed doors, agents and families talk. Old friends trade stories. And somewhere, Danault himself keeps the possibility alive—not out of nostalgia, but out of a genuine belief that the door to Montreal remains open, if only the right conditions present themselves.

What would it mean for the Canadiens to welcome back a son of Quebec, a player whose journey began in the small rinks of Victoriaville and found its way to the heart of Montreal? Would it heal old wounds, reignite a fanbase, or simply remind everyone that, in hockey, no story is ever truly finished?

As the season unfolds, and the rumors refuse to die, one thing becomes clear: Phillip Danault’s connection to Montreal is far from over. The only question that remains is how—and when—the next chapter will begin.

Phillip Danault and Canadiens logo

Photo credit: All Montreal Hockey / NHL

Phillip Danault never wanted to slam the door on Montreal and these days, his name is appearing often in trade rumors.

At 32, the Kings’ center is going through a difficult season with zero goals and five assists in 28 games so far, while earning $5.5 million per season until 2027. People forget how emotionally charged the situation was when he left the Canadiens in the summer of 2021. However, Danault could be a name to watch again for Montreal.

The Los Angeles Kings were offering him a six-year, $33-million contract, while Montreal was instead proposing five years at $5 million per season. In reality, we’re talking about an $8-million gap between the two potential deals. In a radio interview, his former agent, Stéphane Fiset, recalled that Danault left reluctantly. According to him, the Quebec native had no issues with anyone in the locker room, nor with the fans-only with the general manager at the time, Marc Bergevin.

The turning point goes back to 2018, during a previous contract negotiation. Canadiens management chose to take him to salary arbitration, with a hearing scheduled just before his wedding, even though the deadline had already fallen a few days earlier. For a player who still did not have a signed contract at that point, the message was quite clear and the pressure was enormous. Over the years, Danault still established himself as an important center. In 2020-2021, he recorded five goals and 19 assists in 53 games, then used his full free agency to accept the Los Angeles offer-a six-year deal officially signed at the end of July 2021.

Phillip Danault and Marc Bergevin: a broken relationship, but not a final one

From the outside, it might look like a complete divorce. Yet Danault has already said that he remains open to returning to Montreal one day, if the conditions are right-both in terms of his role and his chances of winning. He said so already in a TV interview a few years ago, and Fiset has just repeated it.

“I can’t say he left the Montreal Canadiens on bad terms. He left on bad terms with one person. I would tell you it wasn’t with the organization. He loves the Canadiens organization.

At this point, I don’t really have regular conversations with Philippe anymore, but his parents are very good friends of mine and so on. So we still talk a lot. And as you said, the door is open for him to return to Montreal. He wouldn’t mind coming back to Montreal.”

– Stéphane Fiset

In his NHL career, Danault has played 737 games, with 125 goals and 273 assists for 398 points, along with a +83 rating. For a guy from Victoriaville who grew up dreaming of playing at the Bell Centre, that’s no small thing. In the end, the bridges between Phillip Danault and Montreal don’t seem burned. The only real knot in the story is the former management embodied by Marc Bergevin, who is no longer there.

With a team currently searching for stability at center, let’s just say the idea of a return will linger in many people’s minds as long as his contract in Los Angeles remains unfinished.