Rene Bourque could find himself in the NHL's doghouse again after a questionable hit on Carl Hagelin. Bourque has been suspended twice this season and was just making his Montreal Canadiens debut tonight (which happened to be his first game back since his latest suspension). It didn't seem as egregious as his two other dirty hits, but you'd think he would exercise a little more discretion after losing game checks so often.

Sunday, Jan. 15 marks Rene Bourque's Montreal Canadiens debut. Bourque finds himself on a new team after being traded for Michael Cammalleri during his five-game suspension. He has the potential to add a new wrinkle to the struggling Habs offense if he asserts himself.

Rene Bourque will serve the fifth and final game of his suspension on Saturday. Bourque, who is being punished for elbowing Washington's Nicklas Backstrom in the head, was dealt to Montreal Thursday night. Bourque will be eligible to make his Canadiens debut on Sunday.

The Montreal Canadiens have acquired Rene Bourque, Patrick Holland, and a second-round pick in the 2013 Draft from the Calgary Flames for Mike Cammalleri, minor-league goalie Karri Romo and a 2012 fifth-round pick. In a prism, this deal is Bourque for Cammalleri, though the higher draft pick the Habs received can't be discounted. While cheaper ($3.33 million cap hit until 2015-16 to $6 million in 2013-14), the 30-year-old Bourque certainly doesn't have the offensive upside of Cammalleri. This season, the winger has amassed 13 goals and 16 points while averaging 17:10 per game and his highest point total was 58 two seasons ago. Cammalleri, on the other hand, has struggled this season (22 points) but has two 80-point campaigns under his belt. What the Canadiens do add is some size up front (Bourque is 6-foot-2, 213 pounds, while Cammalleri is only 5-foot-9, 183 pounds). The risk of moving someone like Cammalleri who has a proven scoring track record seems questionable, though ... especially for a Habs team at the bottom half of the league in scoring. Bourque is also in the midst of serving a five-game suspension (due back Jan. 17).

Rene Bourque has been handed a five-game suspension by the NHL. Bourque is being punished for elbowing Washington's Nicklas Backstrom in the head. Backstrom no longer had the puck when Bourque hit and in our opinion, it looked like Bourque had to go out of his way to make the head the principal point of contact. "When we look at the events of this game, we believe Bourque's assertion that this was an instinctive reflex rather than a premeditated attempt to injure," said NHL disciplinarian Brendan Shanahan. "However as all of the parties in the hearing agreed, this reckless elbow to the head is indefensible." Backstrom was hurt on the play and Bourque is a repeat offender, so the five-game suspension makes sense. He'll be eligible to return on January 17th.

The NHL will hold a disciplinary hearing for Rene Bourque after he elbowed Washington's Nicklas Backstrom in the head on Tuesday. "Did it look really bad?" Bourque asked. "Was he hurt? I didn't even know if I clipped him. I didn't even know if I hit him in the head." In response to Bourque's first question, yes, to us, it looked bad. It looked like Bourque not only went out of the way to hit Backstrom well after he had passed the puck, but also raise his elbow so that he could make direct contact with Backstrom's head. In answer to Bourque's second question, yes Backstrom was hurt on the play. He participated in one more shift before leaving the game and he is now day-to-day. Bourque has already received one suspension this season and we wouldn't be surprised if this results in his second.

Rene Bourque took two bad penalties in Tuesday's game. Bourque got two minutes for holding Dennis Wideman just 36 seconds into the game. Alex Ovechkin scored on the penalty. Bourque also was charged for holding in the overtime period of Friday's contest, which led to Daniel Alfredsson scoring the deciding goal. Bourque also elbowed Nicklas Backstrom after Backstrom had already passed the puck and was heading to the bench. Bourque got two minutes and might be suspended. These penalties followed Flames coach Brent Sutter holding a pre-game meeting to talk about the team's need to stay disciplined.

Rene Bourque was reinstated from his suspension on Friday December 23.

Rene Bourque apologized to Brent Seabrook for hitting him from behind during Sunday's game. Bourque received a two-game suspension for his actions. "I played with the guy four years. I felt pretty bad," Bourque said. "I went and talked to him during the third period just to make sure he was alright and say sorry. He accepted my apology." Bourque will be eligible to return December 23rd.

Rene Bourque has been suspended for two contests by the NHL. Bourque is being punished for his hit on Brent Seabrook during Sunday's contest. The fact that Bourque has never previously been fined or suspended by the NHL probably factored into the decision. He'll be eligible to return on Friday December 23rd.