Patrik Laine: red flags just like Pierre-Luc Dubois last summer

If there are two players who have been linked forever in the National Hockey League and seem doomed to be so for the rest of their careers, it’s Pierre-Luc Dubois and Patrik Laine.

Indeed, both forwards were first drafted in the same draft year in 2016 (Laine at No. 2ᵉ and Dubois at No. 3ᵉ), only to be traded for each other a few years ago.

Both players represented a problem for their respective teams and were therefore traded in order to benefit from a change of scenery.

Dubois went from the Columbus Blue Jackets to the Winnipeg Jets, and Laine did the opposite.

The two players will therefore be compared throughout their careers, both to analyze the 2016 draft and to analyze this huge transaction in January 2021.

But that’s not all.

In fact, the two players are very similar in many ways, the main one being that the Montreal Canadiens have always been interested in both of them.

The problem is that both players have very similar red flags.

Would Patrik Laine really be worth trading for? @StuCowan1 joins @MatthewOhayon to discuss the rumors linking the 26 year old sniper to the #Canadiens

Full pod
Watch: https://t.co/MgCRTaRIKo
Listen: https://t.co/Y0JMb5Nxgj#GoHabsGo #thesickpodcast pic.twitter.com/U6Bdd7ncOh

– The Sick Podcast with Tony Marinaro (@thesickpodcasts) August 3, 2024

Indeed, as Stu Cowan mentioned in one of the last episodes of the Sick Podcast, Laine and Dubois have several red flags in common.

What red flags?

Well, they’re both players known for their lack of effort on the ice, their nonchalant attitude, and above all their lack of consistency.

And let’s not forget that both players have asked to be traded twice now.

In short, these are two very high-risk players, and so we conclude that for a second summer in a row, the Montreal Canadiens are tied to a player with several red flags.

Last summer, the big rumour was Pierre-Luc Dubois in Montreal, and this year, it’s the same thing with Patrik Laine.

We know how the Dubois saga ended, and let’s just say it’s a sensitive subject in Los Angeles, which spent a lot of money to get the Quebec center.

The Habs avoided a major blunder by pulling out of the race for Dubois.

So why would the Habs take such a risk with Laine?

Well, for one thing, he’s a very different player from Dubois, but mostly because he’s likely to cost the Tricolore very little, should they decide to acquire him.

Laine has just come out of the NHL’s player assistance program, requested a trade, played just 18 games last season and will pocket a lot of money, $8.7 million a year for two more years.

So, Laine would represent a much lower risk than Dubois, for whom the Kings gave away far too much, including a first-round pick and a good young established player in Gabriel Vilardi.

In short, yes, Laine has the same red flags as Dubois, which ultimately proved fatal in Los Angeles, but in the end, it would be a much lower risk and, above all, a shorter one.

Two years goes by quickly compared to the eight years Dubois signed with the Kings, who are now the Washington Capitals’ problem.

So I’m one of those who’d like to see the Habs take a chance on Laine, because he’s worth a try despite the red flags similar to Dubois.

Overtime

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