Habs still in the running for Martin Necas

Martin Necas has been the subject of trade rumors for several months now.

We know that the Carolina Hurricanes want to trade the talented young forward, but the club really wants to get the best possible offer for the Czech.

The Montreal Canadiens have shown interest, but so far, there aren’t really any frontrunners in the race to acquire Necas.

According to David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period, the Habs are still in the race for his services, with two other teams at the top.

As the Hurricanes carry out trade talks with teams about Martin Necas, the word is Carolina is looking to complete a ‘hockey trade’ not a deal strictly for future assets. Teams like Nashville, Seattle, Montreal among those still believed to be in the mix.

– David Pagnotta (@TheFourthPeriod) June 22, 2024

Based on Pagnotta’s tweet, we understand that there are other teams interested, but that the Habs, Nashville Predators and Seattle Kraken would consider Necas the most.

What’s more, the Hurricanes would be looking to complete a “hockey swap” rather than a trade involving prospects and picks.

This complicates things a bit for the Habs, since they’re mainly looking for young players and draft picks.

On the other hand, rumors surrounding Mike Matheson are strong, and this would be the ideal time to trade him, as his value is very high.

With Matheson as the basis of a trade, there wouldn’t be much to add to complete a trade.

Knowing that Kent Hughes wants to improve his offense by adding a good young player, Necas would fill that gap nicely.

The 25-year-old forward collected 71 points in 2022-23, while in 2023-24, he amassed 53 points in 77 games.

Capable of playing both center and wing, he would be a very important addition to the Habs lineup.

Would it be a good idea to trade Matheson for a guy like Necas?

Personally, I think so. The surplus of left-handed defensemen is the talk of the town, and trading Matheson in his prime makes a lot of sense.

Overtime

– Interesting.

Paul Maurice is second on the all-time list for games coached in the NHL. But, unlike the other Hall of Fame names on that list, the Panthers’ bench boss does not have a Stanley Cup title to his name.@lukefoxjukebox has the story from Sunrise, Fla. https://t.co/dbotUCeh7K

– Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) June 22, 2024

– Verhaeghe has always been successful in the big moments.

Most playoff gwg through 70 career games, cap era:

13 – Brett Hull
11 – Wayne Gretzky
10 – Guy Lafleur
10 – Johan Franzén
10 – Joe Sakic
10 – Carter Verhaeghe

Verhaeghe at 68 career games, would love to tie Gretzky on Monday. pic.twitter.com/wy387Dqvbz

– Big Head Hockey (@BigHeadHcky) June 22, 2024

– A thought-provoking question.

If Edmonton & Florida could each bring back 1 player from the last 20 years in their prime, who would they pick? pic.twitter.com/PpHvoD24Tb

– Big Head Hockey (@BigHeadHcky) June 22, 2024