David Reinbacher, Adam Engström, Owen Beck and Florian Xhekaj are all still with the Canadiens, but three of them are expected to be cut within hours.
The Canadiens have to trim to 23 players, with their final roster due at 5 p.m. on Monday.
By all indications, the three cuts will come from that group of four young players, according to Marqueur.com.
Beaudoin has also floated Engström, Beck and goalie Jacob Fowler as possible candidates, unless Samuel Montembeault is traded first.
Reinbacher has had an excellent camp, which is exactly what makes these calls so hard.
Martin St-Louis has also praised Xhekaj's consistency, pointing to how noticeable he's been every time out.
So who actually stays?
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Martin St-Louis faces the hardest cuts of camp before Monday's deadline
The numbers from Saturday won't make it easier. Reinbacher logged 19:09 in a 4-3 loss in Ottawa, took four penalty minutes and finished plus-1.
Engström led every Montreal skater in that game with 23:54 of ice time. He also put three shots on goal.
Beck played 13:02 in the 4-2 home win over Ottawa and didn't register a shot.
Xhekaj logged 13:23 in that win and took an interference minor on the first-period check that injured Senators prospect Adam Nemec.
In goal, Fowler made 16 saves on 18 shots, while Montembeault stopped all 14 he faced.
Reinbacher has earned a spot. Sending down the guy with the best camp to protect a depth body would send the wrong message to the whole room.
Final cuts are like deciding which kids don't get into the car for the road trip. Everybody packed a bag, and somebody's going to be left standing in the driveway.
The Montembeault wrinkle matters too. Moving a goalie would open a roster spot and could change the math entirely.
The Canadiens finished the preseason 4-1-0 and open Tuesday in Toronto.
Somebody who earned a spot is going to hear bad news before then. The only question is which three names get called into Kent Hughes' office first.
Should the Canadiens keep David Reinbacher on the opening night roster?
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