Montreal Canadiens: Another Use For the Cap Space

The cap space that the Montreal Canadiens has been set aside for a big acquisition, but there could be another use for it going into the new season.

With great power comes great responsibility. The $8.5 million in cap space has invoked different emotions from Montreal Canadiens fans whenever they’re reminded of it. Frustration, curiosity, fear, but for the most part, we’re all anxious.

We want to know what Marc Bergevin is going to end up doing with it. However, as team owner Geoff Molson has continuously harped on, the Canadiens won’t make a move just to make a move.

There have been a lot of possible avenues for the cap space already. Another signing from the free agent pool, room to sign a PTO with an impressive training camp, or room to acquire a big piece in a trade. Eyes are still on Matt Duchene who awaits a trade and may sit out of training camp. Obviously fans would want a deal like that to be made considering Montreal has the room to fit him.

Related Story: Make the Trade for Matt Duchene

At the golf tournament Monday, Bergevin stated that there isn’t anything out there at the moment, and that they plan to start the season with the $8.5 million. However, there’s another option that the Habs have, which hasn’t really been talked about much until today. The Montreal Canadiens could play nice guy and help another team out.

Helping Out For a Price

Keep in mind that for the Habs to be where they are organizationally, having this much space is a rarity. There are other teams in the league that are close to or over the cap ceiling. Over the off-season, a team is allowed to be 10% over the maximum, but that’s almost over.

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There are a lot of bad contracts out there. Unfortunately, a lot of them come with term. Some examples are these are Dustin Brown‘s five-years at $5.875 per or Dion Phaneuf‘s four-years at $7 million.

A one-year deal would make the most sense. Currently, the Detroit Red Wings are in trouble. They’re about $3 million over the max as a team that is preparing for its first rebuild in years. Unfortunately, they’re stuck in a long contract negation with RFA Andreas Athanasiou.

Obviously a hope would be that they could shed some salary and get the young center signed. Perhaps the Red Wings would want to get rid of Mike Green‘s $6 million cap hit? That may not make sense for the Canadiens considering how many defencemen they already have on the roster, but that’s just an example.

Another possibility could benefit both the Habs and who they trade with. The St. Louis Blues have been a team that’s wanted to shed salary. What if they decided that they wanted to part ways with Paul Stastny?

Related Story: Acquiring Paul Stastny

Besides the obvious benefit of being a center, Statsny is also an excellent two-way player who would thrive in a Claude Julien system. It’s a $7 million cap hit, but only for a year, and the Habs may be able to get a little more out of St. Louis or get Statsny for cheap.

It’s all possibilities at this point. Hopefully Bergevin does something with in the near future so we can stop talking about it. On the other hand, if the Montreal Canadiens decide to keep the space all year, they’ll have a whole lot of space to make a huge splash at the Trade Deadline in February.

Next: Review of the Rookie Tournament

What do you think the Habs will do with the space? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!