The Montreal Canadiens have acquired goaltender Hunter Shepard and forward Jake Chiasson from the Ottawa Senators in exchange for forward Riley Kidney.
In a related deal, the Belleville Senators have acquired defenseman Ryan O’Rourke from the Laval Rocket for future considerations.
Shepard owns a record of 6-7-2 with a 3.65 goals-against average and an .885 save percentage in 15 appearances with Belleville this season.
Shepard won back-to-back Calder Cup championships with the Hershey Bears, earning the Jack A. Butterfield Trophy as the most valuable player of the 2023 postseason as well as the Aldege “Baz” Bastien Award as the AHL’s outstanding goaltender in 2023-24.
In 133 career AHL appearances with Hershey and Belleville, Shepard has gone 84-33-14 with a 2.38 GAA, a .910 save percentage and 11 shutouts. He is also 30-17 (2.44, .909) in 47 Calder Cup Playoff games.
Chiasson has recorded one assist in 20 games with Belleville this season, adding two goals and six assists in 14 ECHL contests with Allen. The third-year pro has appeared in 40 games at the AHL level with Belleville and Bakersfield.
Kidney has spent the majority of the 2025-26 season with Trois-Rivières (ECHL), recording 11 goals and 22 assists in 46 games. He also has one assist in six games for Laval.
Over three pro seasons, Kidney has totaled 11 goals and 26 assists for 37 points in 127 AHL games with the Rocket.
O’Rourke has collected two assists in nine games with Laval this season, along with one goal in 11 games for Trois-Rivières.
In 238 AHL games over parts of five pro seasons, O’Rourke has tallied six goals and 36 assists for 42 points with Laval and Iowa.