When are we going to close the deal, Kent?

Charles-Alexis Brisebois
When are we going to close the deal, Kent?
Credit: YouTube

For a young team, having a first-round pick is important—especially after not having one in 2025.

Seeing Gleb Pugachyov join the organization is great news. He's a solid addition for a team that needs to build depth for the future.

We're all on the same page here. Both fans and management are mostly happy to have him in town.

But even if the Canadiens' first-round pick didn't seem to have as much value (on the trade market) as some people think, the fact remains that the club tried to trade the pick.

Why? To get immediate reinforcements.

Yesterday, it was clear that Kent Hughes was frustrated at not having been able to make a move. We also sense the same frustration among Canadiens fans, who have seen the entire NHL make moves this week.

But what about the Habs? They haven't made a move. Not for anything big, at least.

Kent Hughes, who's been making quite a few calls to his counterparts, is confident he'll be able to make a move… eventually. We don't know exactly when, but he's confident.

The GM reiterated yesterday that the window for making moves isn't limited to this week or this summer.

The GM is right: he can make moves at any time. He's also right to say that, as a buyer, he doesn't have as much control over the market as he did when he was a seller.

But at some point, Hughes (who is learning to put the finishing touches on a rebuild in his first job of this kind) will have to stop putting off the project.

No, there's no rush at this point. Yes, he's shown in the past that he often gets his way—and he can do so at any time.

But the fact remains that this week's inaction—while everyone else was making moves ahead of the draft—is starting to be a cause for concern in a way. There are plenty of rumors, but few results.

Last year, Kent Hughes pulled off his biggest move as GM by acquiring Noah Dobson. He also traded for Zachary Bolduc in exchange for Logan Mailloux. So he certainly wasn't idle in the summer of 2025.

But at that point, everyone knows he tried to land a top-6 center—or at least a second-line forward. It didn't work out for him.

At the 2026 trade deadline? Same story. Even though he came close.

No, the summer of 2026 isn't over yet, but a third window (the pre-draft window) has just closed without a top-6 player being added to the Canadiens' roster.

At some point, the Canadiens will have to be able to do more than just come close. Because even if the Stanley Cup window isn't about to close, “coming close” is only good for pétanque.

When will a trade happen, Kent? Because prices may be high, but he's already said he's willing to overpay for the right player.


In a nutshell

– Read this.

– Interesting.

– Today's picks for the Habs.

– The Connor Hellebuyck story isn't over yet.

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