Habs: “The main need now seems to be on the right wing of the first line.”

Mathis Therrien
Habs: “The main need now seems to be on the right wing of the first line.”
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Throughout the summer of 2025, the entire practice camp, and much of the current season, there has been concern about the second center position with the Montreal Canadiens.

Pretty much everyone wanted to see Kent Hughes acquire a second-line center to improve the team right away, but that never happened.

And now, over the past few months, the need for a second center has greatly diminished thanks to Oliver Kapanen's performances.

Although he's not perfect, the 22-year-old rookie forward is doing a tremendous job centering Ivan Demidov and Juraj Slafkovsky with 31 points, including 18 goals, in 57 games.

Kapanen's impressive and surprising performances have single-handedly quieted the trade rumors for a second center, and now the main need seems to be elsewhere.

Indeed, the Habs' primary need now appears to be on the right wing of the first line.

Indeed, as David Pagnotta reported during the latest episode of The Sheet podcast with Jeff Marek, the habs' ideal scenario would be to make a trade for a right winger for their first line.

Obviously, Pagnotta says this is a difficult goal to achieve, but the fact remains that it is now surely the main need in the minds of Kent Hughes and the other Canadiens executives.

There is no suggestion that the Habs will definitely make a trade to fill this need, but Pagnotta remains curious to see if Kent Hughes will once again attempt to acquire Jordan Kyrou from the St. Louis Blues.

It's the most logical option, and the one that would make the most sense considering the current status of both teams.

However, Pagnotta adds at the end of his segment on the Canadiens that if Kent Hughes is unable to complete a trade to fill a certain need, he is very happy and confident with the team he currently has at his disposal.

In short, the habs' main need has shifted elsewhere, and it could be interesting come trade deadline day.


Overtime

– Happy Valentine's Day to everyone!

– Stay tuned.

– It's clear that it's really horrible.

– Well, that's good.

– Worth listening to.

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