Max Pacioretty will be a valued addition at the deadline, and after Buffalo increased their price for Evander Kane, he may be the better option for teams.
If you look at any NHL trade bait list, Evander Kane will be at the top of it. The 26-year-old has had his name floated around trade talks for a number of seasons, but considering his UFA status come July 1st, this is probably the year he is finally moved. Kane is having another decent year with the Sabres with 16 goals and 20 assists and, similar to Max Pacioretty with the Montreal Canadiens, could provide some scoring help to teams looking to do some damage in the playoffs.
It was made known what the Buffalo Sabres would want in return for Kane. A first-round pick, prospect, and conditional pick based on whether the pending free agent re-signs with the team he is traded to. However, according to TSN’s Darren Dreger – who revealed the initial desire from the Sabres – the asking price has been increased to wanting a roster player on top of that.
Look at what the Minnesota Wild has done. You gave up a lot for Martin Hanzal last year, and now that is the golden standard for deadline acquisitions. Now, a price that was already high, to begin with, has a couple more 0’s added to the end of it.
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I’m sure Kane will be moved at some point, however, I’m not sure if Jason Botterill gets what he wants from it. Additionally, Damien Cox made a point in an article that Kane isn’t a franchise player and should be added as a complementary piece to an already established core.
We’ve seen teams in the past do whatever it takes to take a run at the Stanely Cup, but it’ll be interesting to see if anyone bites on this at full price.
Bringing it to Montreal
So how do the Habs fit into this? Based on what Nick Kypreos said during Hockey Central, Marc Bergevin would want picks, prospects, and most importantly a young top goal scorer in exchange for Pacioretty. Now you’re probably thinking if the Sabres are asking for all of that for Kane, then imagine what they could get for a five-time 30-goal scorer, and you’d be right to think that.
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Kane and Pacioretty have their different details to their playing style, but they can put the puck in the net. Granted the Habs’ captain is having a down year in that department, however, his four goals in four games could hint at him returning to form.
Between the two, I think a team would be more willing to pay that high of a price for Pacioretty considering his cap hit and on top of that his additional year next season. If anything, Bergevin could end up getting what he wants for the 30-year-old and possibly more if the Sabres are willing to keep their price for Kane so high.
We also have to take into consideration that general managers lose their minds come Trade Deadline time so someone could very well give Botterill what he wants. That being said, I do think that after this announcement, teams may be more willing to give Bergevin the call to acquire Paccioretty.
Whether that happens or not we’ll have to wait and see, but it is interesting to think about.
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Do you think the prie for Kane will have any effect on a Pacioretty trade? Is he the better option? Let us know your thoughts down in the comments.