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I know what bothers me the most about the Brady Tkachuk trade—and no, it's not the fact that Canada is becoming a second-rate option for a lot of professional athletes.
What really bugs me about these trades are the players with no-trade clauses who ask to be traded… but only list two or three teams they'd be willing to go to.
The result: the team that invested a high draft pick, development time, money, and lost opportunity costs ends up having to sell that player at a discount. The law of supply and demand plays a much smaller role when there are only two teams involved than when there are, say, 14…
I view no-trade and no-movement clauses as tools used by players to prevent themselves from being traded against their will to a city they don't want to go to. And that's fine with me…
Except that once a player demands that his GM trade him, those clauses “to protect him” should be null and void. He no longer needs to be protected from his “damn heartless employer.”
The Senators would have received much more in return for their captain if they'd been able to negotiate with all NHL teams following Brady Tkachuk's request to leave Ottawa.
Two Games in Gatineau for the Habs' Rookies
The regular season is set to begin on September 29—nearly ten days earlier this year. Why? Because we'll have two more regular-season games… and two fewer preseason games.
Nothing is lost, nothing is gained, as the saying goes… except that we can all agree two games that count toward the standings will be more enjoyable to watch than two extra preseason games featuring lineups that resemble those of the Rocket, the Lions, and Canadian junior hockey.
The Canadiens have just announced that their rookies will play two exhibition games on September 12 against the Jets' rookies and on September 13 against the Senators' rookies. The games will be played in Ottawa. Unfortunately, the Habs' top prospects won't be participating: Hage will be in college, Zharovsky will be in Russia, and Pickford will be in rehab…
That's often how it goes when you've completed your rebuild and are competing in the big leagues.
The Habs' prospects will take the ice at the 2026 NHL Prospect Showdown in Gatineau on September 12 and 13!
Press release ↓ #GoHabsGohttps://t.co/13INmEdMCK
— Montreal Canadiens (@CanadiensMTL) June 23, 2026
What this announcement makes clear is that training camp won't start any earlier than before.
It will simply be shorter—to everyone's delight.
Diane Bibaud at the Jazz Festival
Diane Bibaud, the organist at the Bell Centre during Canadiens games, will give two free performances at the Montreal Jazz Festival: June 27 and 28 at 6:00 p.m. at the corner of Ste-Catherine West and Clark streets.
We'll have the chance to get to know this woman better—who, in our collective memory, is best known as the organist at the Bell Centre.
One day, we might even see her on Ste-Cath for something even bigger: a Stanley Cup parade!
I think I'll still try to go listen to at least one of the two sets. I'm curious.
It's a good thing we didn't host the World Cup in Montreal, because there wouldn't have been a Jazz Festival… and therefore no performances by Diane Bibaud. #LOL
