Patrik Laine will receive a large bonus on March 31: this did not help the CH trade him.
/https%3A%2F%2Fcdn-tor.buminteractif.com%2F2026%2F03%2Fa107f7f7-99cf-4bb6-85da-ed019d4be7e6.jpg)
Patrik Laine is still with the Canadiens.
One might have thought that the CH would manage to send him elsewhere before the trade deadline… but that clearly didn't happen.
One might think that if Kent Hughes had succeeded in his #Mystery Trade on Friday, he would have been more motivated to pay to get Laine out of his organization. But obviously, that didn't happen.
Hughes had an advantage in getting rid of Laine. He wouldn't have been a distraction, and the Canadiens could have more easily managed their 2026-2027 payroll – without the potential deferred bonuses from the young players.
But if the CH GM failed to send the Finn elsewhere, it was mainly because other teams didn't want Patrik Laine's contract.
On that subject, Arpon Basu (The Athletic) reported some information that is quite interesting and provides a little more insight into why teams didn't want Laine.
On March 31, just a few weeks from now, Laine will receive a $2 million bonus.
We knew the bonus existed, but we had no way of knowing that it would be paid out in March (and not during the 2025 offseason).
This is really unusual in hockey.
We suspect that the player's agent negotiated this with the Blue Jackets at the time to make the Finnish player harder to trade as a rental player.
And since Laine wants to stay in Montreal, he did well to protect himself with a bonus in the end.
Laine is earning $7.1 million in base salary this season. Even if the Habs had retained 50% of his salary and even if the season is ending, the $2 million changes the game and means that in real money, Laine would have been expensive for a potential new team in a trade.
Especially for a guy who hasn't scored in 11 months…
in quick succession
– He's gaining confidence.
Logan Mailloux's ice time the last five games for #stlblues:
20:03 tonight at Anaheim
25:03 at San Jose
22:52 at Seattle
20:32 at Minnesota
20:35 vs. New Jersey— Lou Korac (@lkorac10) March 9, 2026
— Oh, really?
According to @BetoMora10, Nick Razzaghi intends to finalize his selections this week.
By next week, we should know the identities of all the players who will start the first season of Supra 2.0 with the club.
Supra is expected to play four games…
— Maxime Truman (@MaximeTruman) March 9, 2026
— Notice to those interested.
Nearly 2,000 listens to an improvised post-match Space from #CFMTL. 
https://t.co/rIcs0S5KFN
— Maxime Truman (@MaximeTruman) March 9, 2026
— Small contract in Boston.
The #NHLBruins have announced that they have signed defenseman Frederic Brunet to a two-year contract extension with an $875,000 AAV. Two-way contract for the 2026-27 season and a one-way contract for the 2027-28 season.
— Jimmy Murphy (@MurphysLaw74) March 9, 2026
