Canadiens Should No Longer Be Just Sellers at This Year’s Trade Deadline – The Hockey Writers Montreal Canadiens Latest News, Analysis & More

The Montreal Canadiens are finally healthy for more than a week, and they are now in the mix, as general manager (GM) Kent Hughes had hoped for at the start of the season. They are three points outside of the final wild card position, currently held by the Ottawa Senators. While Montreal is still not expected to make the playoffs, it may be time for management to rethink their approach to the season. 

Related: Canadiens Finally Healthy & Back in the Mix  

Is this a turnaround that the Canadiens can sustain? If so, it can have direct implications for the team’s direction in the upcoming trade deadline on March 7. Kent Hughes. To sell, stand firm or buy, that is the question.

Canadiens’ Direction

David Ettedgui, a player agent who has a regular segment on French language BPM Sports, brings up the question, what if the Canadiens became buyers? They just had their best record over a single month under head coach Martin St. Louis with a record of 9-5-0, which is a .643 points percentage. Does this, and the fact they’re three points behind the Senators change the direction for the season? Not really, and Hughes can’t let a few wins in the last 30 days dictate any change in direction for his rebuild either. Currently, the Canadiens have a few unrestricted free agents (UFA), such as Christian Dvorak, Joel Armia, David Savard, Jake Evans and Micheal Pezzetta. Hughes will still need to gauge the market for all of them. 

Most of the players named are still likely to remain on the trade block, but two players, Savard and Evans, play key roles in the team’s current performance, and even though their contracts expire at the end of the season, they could be kept as “own rentals” meaning Hughes will hold onto them and risk losing them on the open market in the summer. So technically, the answer to the question of sell, hold firm or buy is going to be on a case-by-case basis.

Selling Montreal 

While keeping Evans long-term is a good idea, it all depends on what his next contract will be. When it comes to Savard, it is less about salary for his next contract, and more about leaving space for players like Logan Mailloux to graduate into next season, especially now that, Alexandre Carrier, a steady veteran right-handed defenceman was added who can fill the void if Savard departs. These two players are likely now to remain as “own rentals”. It is still possible that a rival team comes calling for their services, but the price to get them out of Montreal will be high, as their value to the current lineup is high, and the importance of providing the youth on the roster an environment where they are competitive against the NHL’s best teams, and playing games that matter until the end of the season is necessary for their progression. That leaves Armia, Dvorak and Pezzetta. 

With Dvorak and Armia the most likely to be moved out of the group, losing them would impact the team’s depth, and size, but would open the door and salary cap space to make a separate move. While the Canadiens currently have over $7 million in cap space, it is all from Carey Price and his $10.5 million being on the long-term injured reserve (LTIR) list, so Hughes will still need to ensure he has space next season, even if the cap is rumoured to be going up. 

Canadiens Still Need Size 

TSN insider Darren Dreger saw a shakeup coming in Montreal, and for good reason — they had been far too inconsistent. Just a few days after that speculation, Hughes added Carrier from the Nashville Predators. His addition has seemed to stabilize their blue line, to the point that they allowed four goals (an average of 1.33 goals against) versus three recent Stanley Cup championship teams. That doesn’t mean Hughes is done making changes, but it does buy him the time to be patient for the right deal. While they are having some success very recently, they do need to address needs.  

One need is for a skilled player who also has some size and one or two moves to add that can make a world of difference. Last season the New Jersey Devils finished 22nd in the league, outside of the playoffs and held a top 10 pick. This season they currently are sitting at fourth overall in the NHL, second in their division and nine points up on the top wild card team. In an interview, New Jersey Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald stated that:

“We knew we were soft and needed to get tougher mentally and physically. We needed to be tougher to play against. If you think you’re getting through four rounds in the playoffs and don’t need toughness and strong will, you’re kidding yourself. So we went out and got guys that could help us become that type of team.” 

Montreal’s blue line is the most glaring example of what the rebuild plan is leading to. There is a balance being created between skill and size. With Ivan Demidov waiting in the wings, who oozes skill and is average size for the NHL, there is still a need to fill. That need is still at forward.  

With the deep prospect pool and a truckload of draft picks, Hughes has the assets to be a buyer, and for once he has some space on the roster. By targeting an older prospect or young NHL player, he can fill a team need immediately. He has shown a penchant for doing just that as he has traded for that type of player in the past, namely Kirby Dach and Alex Newhook. Several players are struggling to get what they need to take the next step that Hughes can target. Doing so in the season would make him a buyer, even if that type of purchase is more likely to occur in the offseason. 

The underlying question is if the Canadiens and Hughes will be sellers, buyers or even a team that stands firm with the roster. The answer, is yes, to all three. I know it’s not the definitive direction fans like to see, but with the roster construction being what it is due to salary, age and needs, Montreal fits firmly into all three categories. Given the stage the rebuild plan sits, Hughes can go in any direction, or choose all of them in one form or another. Because of this, the March 7 NHL trade deadline will be that much more interesting for Canadiens fans.