There has been some chatter about trading Jake Evans, who likely is an easy move if a new contract is not signed soon. David Savard, Christian Dvorak, Brendan Gallagher, Josh Anderson and Joel Armia seem to fluctuate in trade discussions. So are the Habs sitting in a “soft sell” or a “hard sell” position ahead of the March 7 NHL trade deadline?
After i on X — @JMcinthe613
After going 1-7-1 in their last nine games and falling six points out of a wild-card playoff spot — with four teams between them and the Detroit Red Wings, who hold the last spot — the Canadiens are now in a “hard sell” position.
As GM Kent Hughes said at his mid-season news conference, he won’t deviate from the rebuilding plan, which remains to build a team that can compete for a Stanley Cup for several years. Hughes added at the time there were still 22 games left before the trade deadline and there was still a lot to learn about the team. The GM has since learned this group isn’t good enough to be “in the mix” for a playoff spot this season.
Evans, Armia, Savard and Dvorak can all become unrestricted free agents on July 1 and I now expect them all to be traded. Gallagher, 32, still has two more seasons left on his contract with a US$6.5 million salary-cap hit, which makes it unlikely he will be moved. There might be some interest in Anderson, 30, who has two more seasons left on his contract with a US$5.5 million salary-cap hit, but Hughes won’t give him away.
During the Canadiens’ hot streak, the talk was keeping the unrestricted free agents for the playoff run. Looks like that won’t happen for the Habs, but the Laval Rocket are in first place in the overall AHL standings. Why not keep those UFAs (unless Hughes gets a deal he can’t refuse) for the sake of the prospects playing in Laval’s playoff run? Because trading away the UFAs means calling up key Rocket players. I’d prefer to see Owen Beck, Logan Mailloux and even Jakub Dobes with Laval.
Mick Chow
The No. 1 priority for Hughes and Jeff Gorton, the executive vice-president of hockey operations, is the future of the Canadiens and what’s best for the NHL team. What’s best now for Montreal moving forward is to acquire other assets in exchange for the UFAs.
But Hughes and Gorton also understand the importance of young prospects playing in meaningful games in the AHL. That will definitely come into play at the deadline next month for players to be sent down to the AHL so they can be available for the playoffs. It could be a bit of a juggling act depending on which players are traded away since the Canadiens still need 20 players for their lineup.
“I remember Lou’s (AHL) teams in New Jersey they were always good, whether it was in Albany or Utah or wherever they were,” Gorton said about former Devils and current New York Islanders GM Lou Lamoriello when he was a guest last month on The Sick Podcast — The Eye Test with Pierre McGuire and Jimmy Murphy. “They were always winning and developing and then they would get them up (in the NHL). And then Tampa Bay did it with Jon Cooper (coaching) in the minors. So there’s something to it — playing meaningful games, going on runs, playing series, playing a seven-game series. Going through the grind of it all. Understanding winning … the difference between winning and losing and the little things that matter. All those things are huge.”
Gorton has been impressed by the job first-year Rocket head coach Pascal Vincent has done with the team, which has a 30-12-3 record.
“Pascal’s done a great job,” Gorton said. “He’s a really good hockey guy. Every day’s sort of the same with him. I’ve been really impressed with him.”
Could the Canadiens waive Patrik Laine? If so, what are the short- and long-term consequences? Similarly, what happens if Laine is demoted to Laval?
Scott Hinckley
The Canadiens could put Laine on waivers and send him to Laval like they did last season — twice — with Joel Armia. That was a real wake-up call for Armia, who has turned his game around since and now has value on trade market ahead of the March 7 deadline.
Having said that, I’d be surprised if the Canadiens took that route with Laine, who is a key part of the team’s power play, where he has scored 10 of his 12 goals in 28 games. Laine has one more season left on his contract with a salary-cap hit of US$8.7 million — the highest on the team.
The big reason the Canadiens were able to acquire Laine from the Columbus Blue Jackets last summer in exchange for defenceman Jordan Harris was they were willing to take on his entire contract. The Blue Jackets added a second-round pick at the 2026 NHL Draft so they could part ways with Laine.
Best-case scenario for the Canadiens now would be for the 26-year-old Laine to find his game before next season’s NHL trade deadline when he might have value with an expiring contract.
What are your thoughts on Ivan Demidov making it to Montreal next year? And who will be his linemates?
joe on X — @jjtotall
Demidov will be with the Canadiens next season and I’d expect he will have Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield as his linemates.
Juraj Slafkovsky has been a disappointment this season playing with Suzuki and Caufield after posting 16-19-35 totals over the final 41 games last season.
Slafkovsky has only eight goals and 30 points in 53 games this season with his new eight-year, US$60.8-million contract kicking in next season with an annual salary-cap hit of US$7.6 million.
Shane Wright — who stared down the Canadiens table at the 2022 NHL Draft after they took a pass on him with the No. 1 overall pick and took Slafkovsky instead — has one more point than Slafkovsky this season with 12-19-31 totals in 54 games after being selected fourth overall by the Seattle Kraken. Wright is on the third line and second power-play unit in Seattle, averaging 13:32 of ice time. Slafkovsky is on the first line and first power-play unit, averaging 16:52 of ice time. Logan Cooley, selected third overall at the 2022 draft by the Arizona Coyotes (now the Utah Hockey Club), also has more points than Slafkovsky this season with 15-28-43 totals in 50 games. Cooley has missed the last six games with a lower-body injury.
Demidov, who has 19-27-46 totals in 54 games this season with SKA St. Petersburgh in the KHL, looks like he could be a good fit with Suzuki and Caufield after being selected with the fifth overall pick at last year’s draft.
With two recent penalty shots missed and many nullified breakaways over the last few games — as well as so many errant shots on goal — why can’t Canadiens players improve their shooting accuracy?
Dick Labete
It’s a combination of things. Players squeezing their sticks too tight on a struggling team, bad luck and/or a lack of offensive skills.
However, the Canadiens only rank 15th in the NHL in missed shots with 780. The Carolina Hurricanes lead the league with 1,061 missed shots.
One of the reasons the Canadiens don’t miss a lot is because they don’t get enough shots, ranking 30th in the NHL with an average of 26 per game. The only two teams below them are the Vancouver Canucks (25.5) and Chicago Blackhawks (24.8).
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