Is Cole Caufield really untouchable for the Canadiens?

The second-line center, the right-handed defenseman, the “grinder” type: the Canadiens have plenty of needs.

We know that Kent Hughes and Jeff Gorton, who want to make the Canadiens a contender year after year, are well aware of their team's weaknesses.

They watched the playoff games just like everyone else.

That said, you know very well that to get something, you have to give something. And on that note, the Habs have several young players who could be offered in a major trade.

But is it possible that players like Michael Hage, Alexander Zharovsky, Adam Engstrom, or David Reinbacher aren't enough? Even with draft picks thrown in?

Is it possible that Kent Hughes will have to give up active players (freeing up space in the NHL and clearing cap space in the process) to get what he wants?

If that's the case, Jean-Charles Lajoie sees only four untouchables right now: Lane Hutson, Nick Suzuki, Juraj Slafkovsky, and Ivan Demidov. As he said (TVA Sports) on air yesterday: everything else seems fair game to me.

There are few untouchables on the Habs https://t.co/IgVbPup24E

— TVA Sports (@TVASports) June 8, 2026

You may have noticed that JiC, who spoke with people in the know in the NHL, didn't include Cole Caufield among the team's four potential untouchables. Neither did he mention Noah Dobson or Jakub Dobes, for that matter.

This isn't an official list, but rather his take based on his sources.

Does that mean Kent Hughes wants to trade the 51-goal scorer, who underperformed in the playoffs? That's absolutely not what we're saying.

But would the GM be more inclined to trade him instead of, say, Slaf? It's safe to assume so, in practice.

Overtime

The JiC editorial is titled “The Canadiens Must Sacrifice Oliver Kapanen,” and I agree with him. Ultimately, if a current player has to be traded, it might as well be the rookie.

Especially since, according to the host, Kapanen has good value—which can only go down, in my opinion.

“Kapanen might help us avoid sacrificing guys like Hage and Zharovsky or even Caufield.” – JiC