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Canadiens Deadline Primer: Trade Targets, Rumours, Salary Cap
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- Canadiens Deadline Primer: Trade Targets, Rumours, Salary Cap
Eric Bolte-Imagn Images
The Montreal Canadiens have until 3 pm on Friday to make a deal before the NHL Trade Deadline comes into play.
Is important to note that most rumours should be taken with a grain of salt. It's very easy to add the Canadiens to the mix to bait engagement.
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That being said, not every rumour is unfounded.
The Canadiens are very active on the trade market, inquiring as to potential trade costs of various players. This means there could be a fire below the smoke, while also understanding that Kent Hughes is among the busiest general managers in the league when it comes to fulfilling due diligence.
Potential Montreal Canadiens Trade Deadline Targets
The Canadiens have been linked to several forwards, including St. Louis Blues centre Robert Thomas . While the cost of acquisition is expected to be very high, there's no doubt Thomas would significantly improve Montreal's top six. Click here to view the most recent analysis regarding the Robert Thomas rumour.
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Calgary Flames forward Nazem Kadri is a name that has been circulated all year, with a renewed sense of interest from the Canadiens in recent days. Simply put, the Canadiens would like to acquire a premiere centre, if the price is right. Thomas would be the ideal target, but if it's not a feasible trade, Montreal would pivot to a player such as Kadri .
Maintaining the centre theme, Montreal has also been linked to New York Rangers centre Vincent Trocheck . At 32 years old, he doesn't necessarily fit the age group of the majority of the lineup, but he's done a fantastic job bucking the usual statistical downtick that often takes place once a player is on the wrong side of 30. Click here to view our latest article analyzing the potential impact of Trocheck in the Canadiens lineup.
Seeing as the Habs have struggled in the goaltending department, they have been linked to veteran netminders such as Sergei Bobrovsky and Jordan Binnington . At a glance, it would make sense to add a Stanley Cup-winning goalie to the mix, but the fact remains that both goalies linked to the Habs have worse numbers than Samuel Montembeault , the goalie they'd replace. All things considered, a trade involving Bobrovsky or Binnington would not make sense for the Canadiens .
Recent Montreal Canadiens Trade Rumours
Defenceman Arber Xhekaj was linked to the Flames , an interesting development seeing as we know Montreal and Calgary are common trade partners, even more so when we remember the teams have discussed a potential Kadri trade.
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As for Patrik Laine , the Kings have reportedly circled back to the 27-year-old forward , though it remains to be seen whether the Canadiens will receive a legitimate offer. Laine's contract expires this summer, and there's no reason to force a trade, unless Hughes wants to liberate salary cap space for another potential deal.
Salary Cap Situation
The Canadiens have roughly $1.5 million in available salary cap funds, though it's important to note that players moved at the NHL Trade Deadline do not carry their full cap hit to the new team.
Salaries are based on days, and given that there will be roughly 22% of the days left in the schedule, cap hits will only account for 22% of their original value.
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For example, if the Canadiens manage to find a suitor for Laine, that team would only be on the hook for about a fifth of his $8.7 million contract, roughly $1.9 million.
Montreal Canadiens Brass Tacks
The Canadiens are far from a perfect team, but they're also well ahead of schedule when it comes to their long-term rebuild goals.
With that in mind, there's absolutely no rush to pull off a significant Trade Deadline deal, as they're not quite ready to compete for the Stanley Cup in the first place.
There's also the matter of the seller's market, which has seen bottom-six players such as Nicolas Roy fetch a first-round pick. The price tags are far from reasonable—par for the course leading into the final day of trades in the league.
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Things can change in a hurry, but all signs point to this being another quiet deadline for Kent Hughes and Company.
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