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Deadline: “Kent Hughes is making calls for trades he would make in June”
Félix Forget
Deadline: “Kent Hughes is making calls for trades he would make in June”
Credit: With the Canadiens struggling for a little while now, the idea of seeing the club as buyers at the deadline is becoming increasingly unrealistic. The team is still in a rebuilding phase, after all… and paying a high price for rental players doesn’t make sense in the current state of affairs. And this is true […]
With the Canadiens struggling for a little while now, the idea of seeing the club as buyers at the deadline is becoming increasingly unrealistic. The team is still in a rebuilding phase, after all… and paying a high price for rental players doesn’t make sense in the current state of affairs.

And this is true even if Kaiden Guhle’s health is very uncertain.

That said, during today’s episode of Radar (BPM Sports), Pierre LeBrun talked a little about the team’s plans leading up to the deadline….

And there is one line that stands out:

Kent Hughes is making calls for trades he would make in June. – Pierre LeBrun.

The excerpt starts HERE if you want to listen to it.

What needs to be understood, however, is that the GM is not calling to lay the groundwork for a trade that would be completed in June. In fact, what LeBrun means is that the Habs, if they move before March 7, would do so with the perspective of helping their team beyond this season.

In short, a bit like with Alexandre Carrier.

Nonetheless, there is a world in which the Habs come to terms with reality and accept to be sellers. This means that guys like Jake Evans, Joel Armia, David Savard, and Christian Dvorak could be traded…

But not at any price.

In fact, according to LeBrun, the Canadiens have still not made a decision on this. However, they are still talking to other teams regarding their players, especially in Evans’ case.

According to Tony Marinaro and Jean-Charles Lajoie, the Devils and the Lightning are two teams that have spoken with the Habs regarding the center player. In the podcast, LeBrun notes that it will take (at least) a second-round pick to get him out of Montreal… and even then, the Habs might decide to pass if that’s all they receive.

However, LeBrun also brings up the idea of seeing the Canadiens approach the deadline with a more human perspective. He notably gave the example of Savard, a respected and appreciated veteran in the city… and he wondered if the Habs could ask him what he prefers to finish the season.

Perhaps, for example, the Canadiens would not want to trade Savard for a fourth-round pick from a contending team… but if the defenseman tells the GM that he would like to win the Cup again and the team honors his request, it would send a nice message to the rest of the league (a bit like the management of Jeff Petry’s second stint in the city).

We know that Hughes is close to his players, and it’s reasonable to think that this is a scenario that makes a lot of sense. It shouldn’t prevent the GM from thinking about the team’s best interest first… but sometimes, taking a small step back today can help you in the long run if you send the message to the rest of the league that you treat your players well.

With the break for the 4 Nations Confrontation coming, the talks about the deadline will accelerate. Let’s see what the plan is in Montreal now.


In brief

– I can’t wait to see him at the Bell Centre next year.

– Very touching.

– Lots of scouts in Chicago tonight.

– Kirby Dach, a country music guy.

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