The Canadiens came close to letting Matthew Knies slip away last night

Charles-Alexis Brisebois
The Canadiens came close to letting Matthew Knies slip away last night
Credit: Kevin Sousa/NHLI via Getty Images

Will the Maple Leafs finally manage to trade Matthew Knies?

We know Kyle Dubas tried to do it (in exchange for Marc-André Fleury) back in the day. We also know Brad Treliving came close to sending him to Montreal.

And now, John Chayka is giving it a shot too. What's the story behind all this? Are they afraid of having a player built for the playoffs who's signed at a good price?

Signing him this summer will be tougher. After all, rumor has it that the Canadiens won't be able to offer Chayka what he's looking for in exchange for Knies.

We're talking about a top-10 pick here.

That said, where there's life, there's hope. What I mean is, as long as he hasn't been traded, there's a chance he could still be in the mix for the Habs.

But yesterday, the Canadiens almost lost hope.

You know that $120 million offer Jason Robertson turned down in Seattle? It would have involved a trade to get him out of Dallas, and the seventh overall pick might have been on the line.

That pick might have been, according to Frank Seravalli, quickly sent to the Maple Leafs in exchange for Knies. The Stars would thus have acquired an ideal player (both on the ice and in terms of salary, at $7.75 million) to replace Jason Robertson.

If he leaves, replacing Robertson (who reportedly also turned down a contract offer from the Blues) won't be easy. But the Stars could also use the assets they receive in exchange for him to pursue Dylan Larkin.

We'll see how this plays out. But it's clear that this is a major story in the NHL.


In a nutshell

– Will the Habs have eight draft picks?

– A Quebecer in Montreal?

– Worth a listen.

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