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Choices #16 and #17 may not be very attractive (individually)
Kevin Vallée
Choices #16 and #17 may not be very attractive (individually)
Credit: The transaction market is likely to be extremely interesting this summer. With a significant increase in the salary cap, some teams that have been on the ropes for the past few years, with little room to maneuver, could make up for it with major moves over the next few months. Personally, I’m expecting a huge […]
The transaction market is likely to be extremely interesting this summer.

With a significant increase in the salary cap, some teams that have been on the ropes for the past few years, with little room to maneuver, could make up for it with major moves over the next few months.

Personally, I’m expecting a huge off-season. Historically, major changes to the league structure, in background, often result in very active periods.

Combine all this with the considerable number of teams at the crossroads, and you’ve got some interesting opportunities to keep an eye on.

While the Canadiens are willing to improve and pay the price to do so, Kent Hughes and Jeff Gorton certainly won’t be the only ones abusing the phone lines. As Marco D’Amico points out in a segment on the Shaun Starr podcast, you don’t have to go far to see this.

It’s likely that 4 of the 5 picks ahead of the Canadiens’ (16,17) will be available. “There are a lot of teams in a similar range that want to improve,” D’Amico pitched. “Several teams are ready to offer their first-round picks.

The Penguins (11), Rangers (12), Blue Jackets (13,20) and Red Wings (14) could use their pick to give their club a “spark”. That’s not necessarily good news for Montreal… which does have two. If we say that the 16th or 17th pick isn’t that tempting, individually, the Canadiens’ strength could be in offering them as a package.

That said, Kent Hughes showed some measured willingness to “overpay”, if a player is considered essential to the outcome. “The reason Kent said that is because there will be a lot of teams shopping around this summer,” believes the analyst.

However, the Habs’ cause could benefit from another phenomenon: the increased availability of interesting players. For much the same reason as mentioned above, normally unavailable players could become available at the right price. “We haven’t heard the last of the surprising players who will be available,” says Marco D’Amico. “People are going to be surprised when they realize who’s on the market”.


Overtime

– A 5-1 victory for Canada, which remains unbeaten.

– Austria’s lone goal belongs to Canadiens prospect Vinzenz Rohrer.

– Jim Hiller back next year.

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