The Canadiens could use a player like Martin Necas right now.

This summer, the Canadiens tried to acquire Martin Necas.

The forward had asked the Hurricanes to trade him because he wasn’t happy with his role in Carolina, and clubs lined up for his services.

The interest was there: Pierre LeBrun told BPM Sports that no fewer than 28 teams called the Canes to talk about the forward…

But taking a step back, we realize that Kent Hughes should have followed his instincts and pushed harder to get him out of Carolina.

Because right now, the Canadiens could use a player like Martin Necas.

The forward has collected at least one point in his last 13 games…

He has 30 points (eleven goals) in just 17 games, and became the first player in Hurricanes history to collect so many points in his first 17 games of the season…

He now ranks third among NHL scorers, behind Nathan MacKinnon (34 points) and Kirill Kaprizov (31 points)…

Necas is truly having the season of his career:

Martin Nečas is on FIRE with an incredible 13-game point streak, racking up 27 points with 10 goals and 17 assists!

Could he find himself in Hart Trophy conversations by the end of the season?

(HT @Canes)pic.twitter.com/iZPb4QRDXZ

– BarDown (@BarDown) November 18, 2024

All this comes at a time when the Canadiens are looking for ways to score more goals.

It seems to me that a player of Necas’ calibre would help Martin St-Louis breathe a little easier… And maybe it would also have given some players more support.

Of course, it’s easy to say that Kent Hughes missed out today because we didn’t know Necas was going to explode like that.

It’s often said that the best deals are the ones you don’t make… And in this case, that applies to the Carolina Hurricanes as opposed to the Canadiens.

That said, knowing that the Hurricanes’ GM (Eric Tulsky) is happy to have kept him with the organization comes as no surprise.

Tulsky told Pierre LeBrun (The Athletic) that he had received some interesting offers for his player, but that none of them were worth sacrificing Necas’ talent :

There is so much truth in the old saying that sometimes the best trades are the ones you don’t make.
Martin Necas, anybody?
In my latest for@TheAthletic, catching up with Hurricanes GM Eric Tulsky on that plus more on his team’s great start https://t.co/6FwgHc2yVt

– Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) November 18, 2024

A missed opportunity for Kent Hughes.

Remember that Martin Necas, who heard a lot about Montreal and made no secret of his affection for the city over the summer, finally signed a two-year contract ($6.5 million per season) with the Hurricanes.

Kent Hughes will be eligible for re-signing in the summer of 2026, while Necas will be free as a bird if he doesn’t extend his contract in Carolina.

But at that point, the player will cost a lot more if he continues to dominate the league as he’s doing right now…

Overtime

– Oilers have a new forward.

#Oilers claimed Kasperi Kapanen off waivers from #stlblues.

– Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) November 19, 2024

– What’s going on with Auston Matthews?

The Leafs say their captain’s injury is minor.. . pic.twitter.com/TBisuZwN0G

– DansLesCoulisses (@DLCoulisses) November 19, 2024

– Solid.

Quite a performance for Alex Belzile today in a 5-4 Hartford Wolf Pack win over the Charlotte Checkers. A hat trick, and he also added a shootout goal. Good old Belz is at it again!

– Anthony Marcotte (@anthonymarcotte) November 19, 2024

– Really?

“” is leaving the for personal reasons! https://t.co/7h0kdMBChQ pic.twitter.com/j21X1gtwfM

– RDS (@RDSca) November 19, 2024

– That would really be a nasty show.

Could we see a Canelo Alvarez vs Artur Beterbiev fight underneath soon? pic.twitter.com/DoT1QZ2j6X

– BPM Sports (@BPMSportsRadio) November 19, 2024