Casey DeSmith: don’t expect him to leave in the next few days

Over the past few days, there’s been a lot of talk about Jeff Petry, acquired by the Habs as part of the Erik Karlsson deal. We suspected that the defenseman wasn’t going to stay in town, and we wondered where he was going to end up.

The goalie joined a group that was already banking on Samuel Montembeault and Jake Allen (and, to a certain extent, Cayden Primeau, since he’s eligible for the ballot), so it was a bit redundant with so much congestion in front of the net.

And at his press briefing today in connection with the announcement of the deal that sent Jeff Petry to Detroit, Kent Hughes spoke a bit about DeSmith. He said he’d been talking to him since the deal was made, and explained that he’ll have to be patient before anything gets done, whether it’s a deal involving him or another goaltender.

His wife, who’s about to give birth, may not want to be patient, though.

According to Hughes, the goaltending market is really slow across the NHL right now, so it’s difficult (if not impossible) for him to fix the problem in the short term. One wonders if Connor Hellebuyck, who is the subject of trade rumours, is holding up the market at the moment.

On the other hand, Hughes was clear with DeSmith: the plan is not to send him to the AHL. Either way, he thinks he’ll be able to deal with his congestion in front of the net without having to send DeSmith, who is eligible for the ballot, to Laval.

To me, it still comes down to a decision between DeSmith and Allen. I don’t see Montembeault being traded, so the Tricolore GM will probably store around for his other two netminders and make a decision based on what he can get in return for their respective services.

We can therefore expect the matter to continue to evolve over the coming days and weeks, but in the very short term, we’re likely to see DeSmith stay in town.

In brief

– Remember that he recently announced his retirement from the NHL.

– Another exciting statistic involving Lane Hutson.

– At least the CH made it to the finals.

– A newcomer in Trois-Rivières.

Joseph Mizzi will begin his first season with the Trois-Rivières Lions on October 20 🔥
The forward will set the Colisée Vidéotron ice ablaze with his excellent vision of the game and his contribution to the team’s offense.👊
Welcome to the team Joseph!🦁 pic.twitter.com/7VZbwby226

– Trois-Rivières Lions (@Lions3r) August 15, 2023

– The Jays find their closer.