Radulov fitting right in with Habs Reformed bad boy Alexander Radulov has been a hit in his first season with the Montreal Canadiens, TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun writes.

Pierre LeBrun TSN Hockey Insider Follow|Archive

MONTREAL -- Alexander Radulov was beaming on Thursday night.

He was showing his 11-month-old son around the Canadiens' digs at the Bell Centre. The expression on Radulov's face as he carried his baby son around in his right arm could have lit up the entire Bell Centre.

These are good times indeed for the once-banished Nashville Predators winger. "Ra-du, Ra-du,'' the crowd had chanted once again during a Habs power play in Montreal's 3-1 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning.

"It's been good [here] so far for me and my family," Radulov, 30, said on Friday. "It's nice to hear that reaction from the fans. It's big for me obviously, but I have to work hard and keep going. Every time I step on the ice I have to do something to help the team.''

Just eight games into the NHL season, it appears that Alexei Kovalev, version 2.0, has surfaced here in La Belle Province. The passionate Montreal fans have embraced the latest version of the misunderstood, enigmatic Russian winger with oodles of talent.

Kovalev found new life in his NHL career when he came here years ago. The fans absolutely loved him. This might be happening all over again with Radulov, who is winning over the folks in these parts not just with his offensive flair but just as much for his dogged determination away from the puck.

"You learn from things you go through," said Radulov. "It's not all about just scoring goals or getting assists. Hockey is about playing both ways. To be a good player, defense, neutral zone, you have to block shots, take a check, whatever helps at that time in a game. The goals and assists will be there if you work hard and do the right job."

And the fans have noticed. "People here see if you're working hard, they will respect that," said Radulov.

One person who would have easily predicted Radulov's early-season success in his return to the NHL after four years back in Russia is his former junior coach in Quebec City.

"I love Alexander Radulov as a person," said Hall of Famer Patrick Roy in French via email Thursday. "He's a dominant player and dedicated and I'm not surprised at all to see his success so far this season.''

The Habs struck out when they took a flyer on a Russian project named Alexander Semin a year ago. Montreal sent Semin packing rather quickly last December.

The Canadiens are banking on a different player his time around. Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin talked with a lot of people before signing Radulov to a one-year, $5.75-million deal on July 1.

"Our guys in Europe really liked his compete level. His skating level was high off the charts," Bergevin said before Thursday's win. "For me, personally, that part is very important, the compete level. I think skill is important but if you have skill and you don't compete, those guys come and go. There's always a risk, especially for a guy who's been gone (from the NHL) for a while, so the term of the contract was very important.''

On a day in which some teams once again had to overpay for the top free agents -- as veteran players landed five-, six- and seven-year deals all over the place last July 1 -- the Habs got an impact player on a one-year deal. In today's cap world, that's found gold.

As long as he delivers, of course.

"I think the fact he played in Quebec City helped us sell him on the passion of our fans in Montreal. So far it's worked out well,'' said Bergevin.

Radulov said his history with the Quebec Remparts was what he pointed to when Bergevin first approached him about playing in Montreal.

"The first thing in the meeting with Marc, he was asking if I could handle the pressure here in Montreal,'' said Radulov. "I said, 'Yeah, I played before in Quebec, I know the French-Canadian people, I had success there.' I get that feeling that Montreal is a great place to play hockey, great fans, great organization, Original Six team.

"It's all about winning here," Radulov continued. "That's why I chose Montreal. I hate losing, too. I want to win. We have a good group of guys with a chance to win.''

Among that group of guys is an old Predators buddy in Shea Weber. And yes, Bergevin made sure to tap into Weber's personal knowledge of Radulov before taking the plunge.

"Oh yeah, I talked to Shea. He said, 'Berg, I would (sign him) if you can,''' said the Habs GM. "He said, 'We grew up together. I think it could work with him.' Yeah he put his stamp on it, he did.''

The Predators and the Habs have some interesting connections this season, don't they? There was so much debate about the Weber-for-P.K. Subban blockbuster. And then you have Bergevin scooping up a player whom Nashville GM David Poile drafted, developed and then brought back a second time from Russia for the 2012 playoffs, an experiment that famously ended with Radulov missing curfew and the Predators self-imploding against the Coyotes in part because of that distraction.

"When we drafted him, we were looking for a high-end, offensive, talented player," Poile said in a phone conversation earlier this week. "There are sometimes some risk with every player when they have that type of skill level. We were really excited when we drafted him, really excited when we brought him over here.

"But where it breaks off for me is that there was a whole series of things that probably fall under immaturity that didn't allow him to be successful on a consistent basis on our team," added Poile. "You'd have to ask him why he went back to Russia in the first place, because I think that hurt him more than anything. I think if he would have stuck it out, my guess is that it would have worked out for us. And him.

"The second time was real unfortunate, at the most important time of year. We made a decision and it was the end of our relationship.''

Seeing a more mature Radulov having this kind of early season success with the Habs? Poile always knew that player was in there. It's why he brought him back a second time.

Turns out it's the third time that was the charm.

"Do I wish he would have found the maturity and consistency level with us a few years ago? Absolutely, but it didn't happen,'' said Poile diplomatically.

When he left Nashville in 2012, Radulov wondered if that was the end of the line for him in the NHL. But he kept the hope alive. And the drive.

"I won't lie to you, I had a lot of things in my mind," said Radulov. "I still believed if I kept working hard back home in Russia and play as good and hard as I can over there, make sure people here see me in case I could come back when I had a chance. It's worked out. I'm hoping to play over here for a number of years.''