Under the new CBA, existing contracts cannot be renegotiated. Given that such is the case, it seems that arbitration is only available for players whose contracts have expired and whose rights are still held by the team.

The club can take 2 kinds of players to arbitration:

1) a Group 2 player who elects not to take the club to arbitration; and

2) A player who earns more than $1.5 million and where the club elects not to make a qualifying offer (which is, in that case, at least 100% of the prior year's salary)

If Bonk was signed the a multi-year contract, the Habs are stuck with the deal that they struck.