The CH reportedly tried to include Laine in a trade for a player in Toronto

DansLesCoulisses.com
The CH reportedly tried to include Laine in a trade for a player in Toronto
Credit: Physiquement, il est guéri, Patrik Laine.

Patrik Laine isn't currently of much use to the Canadiens. Kent Hughes clearly tried to offload his $8.7 million contract at the trade deadline, but either he wasn't able to do so or the asking price was too high.

Last week, we reported that the Maple Leafs and the Flyers had discussed a trade involving Laine with the Habs. This time, we have a few more details.

In the latest episode of Sur le marché de la Commission Athlétique, Marco D'Amico revealed that if Laine were headed to Toronto, it would be with the goal of improving the team.

Normally, if the Canadiens wanted to get rid of Laine's contract, there was a strong chance Montreal would have to pay the other team to take him on. Much like when Kent Hughes traded for a first-round pick with Sean Monahan.

This time, according to D'Amico's report, the Canadiens wanted to try to improve their roster. They reportedly targeted a player like Oliver Ekman-Larsson and/or Brandon Carlo to bolster their defense.

The best comparison D'Amico offers is the Brett Kulak trade to Colorado. The Avalanche sent Samuel Girard, along with a draft pick, to the Penguins in exchange for Brett Kulak.

It was a steep price to pay, but it was mainly to save money on the payroll.

It's clear, then, that the Canadiens wanted to resolve the Laine situation while plugging a hole on the right side of the defense.

It's hard to know what the Canadiens would have had to add on top of Laine to land one of those players, but we already know that right-handed defensemen command a high price on the market.

In the end, this trade didn't happen, and that's a shame for Kent Hughes because that's what needed to happen for him to pull off a bigger deal.

With barely a million dollars under the salary cap, Hughes wasn't going to be able to pull off a blockbuster trade to improve the Habs.


In a nutshell

– The captain is on fire.

– Contract extension in Detroit.

– They can do it.

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