Potential deal: Dvorak’s salary will complicate Kent Hughes’ job

Christian Dvorak is not a fan favorite in Montreal.

Many say the same thing: he’s useless if he doesn’t win his face-offs… And his impact on the ice is minimal.

That’s also why, in the eyes of 85% of the club’s fans, Kent Hughes would be better off trading him.

But trading Christian Dvorak is no piece of cake. And the reason is simple: his contract hurts.

When a 3rd / 4th line player has a cap hit of $4.45M… We agree that it’s far from ideal.

That said, trading D-VO will be even more complicated for Kent Hughes in the coming months, because he’s making a $5.75M salary even though his contract counts for $4.45M on the payroll.

That’s a lot of money, and it’s likely to scare off other National League clubs. Elliotte Friedman wrote about this in a recent article:

Written 32. https://t.co/wPFy7c7VTX

– Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) November 21, 2024

Ideally, Kent Hughes would have to keep some of his salary if he wanted to trade the veteran.

Because no NHL team is going to want Christian Dvorak at $4.45 million per season even if his contract expires next summer.

Unless Kent Hughes decides to add a pick to get rid of the center and his salary… But that would surprise me because it’s not the GM’s style.

Kent Hughes likes to make these trades, but only when he’s on the other side of the table. The Sean Monahan trade is a good example.

All of which is to say that we’ll have to keep an eye on this one, especially if the main player plays the way he has for the past two weeks.

Dvorak seems to have found his feet again after a very difficult start to the season… But it’s going to take more than that for a club to decide to take an interest in his services.

Then again, especially at the salary he’s making.

Overtime

– Excellent text by Nicolas Cloutier (TVA Sports). A great opportunity to learn more about Sam Harris:

Did the Habs draft their next pest in the 5th round in 2023? https://t.co/Cj0dyC4gPY

– Nicolas Cloutier (@NCloutierTVA) November 21, 2024

– He’s really unlucky.

Hurricanes announce goalie Frederik Andersen will have knee surgery on Friday and is expected to be out for 8-12 weeks.

– David Pagnotta (@TheFourthPeriod) November 21, 2024

– Good point.

Do you think the Habs have an “NHL superstar” caliber prospect among their players?https://t.co/fUp3nXF4A0 pic.twitter.com/lgI5PoWJKW

– BPM Sports (@BPMSportsRadio) November 21, 2024

– Whoa.

Undrafted Denver Pioneer Matt Davis (Sr., Calgary, Alberta) is 11-0-0 this season with a 1.46 goals against average and .937 save percentage. His career record is 45-7-3. #cawlidgehawkey https://t.co/ILji0fAivc

– BucciOT.Com (@Buccigross) November 21, 2024