Now that Derick Brassard is off the market, the Montreal Canadiens are going to be the team to call to acquire a centre in Tomas Plekanec.
Maybe it would be a better idea for Trade Deadline coverage to extend to the entire week before it? Either way, another big trade took place last night, and Jim Rutherford made the impact of on the trade market that he wanted. The Pittsburgh Penguins made a three-way deal with the Ottawa Senators and Vegas Golden Knights, and as a result, Derick Brassard is in the fold. It’s good news for the Penguins but even better news for the Montreal Canadiens.
Even though Pittsburgh acquiring Brassard takes them out of the running for Tomas Plekanec, it propels him to the top of the list of available centres. According to Pierre Lebrun, Montreal started to get a lot of calls on the 35-year-old after news of the Pittsburgh deal was out.
It’s not an overly used line this season, but the Habs hold all the cards here. The biggest competition, as far as centres go, are names like Mark Letestu, Derek Ryan, or Luke Glendening. Plekanec makes more than either of them, but he’s a better overall player in terms of shutdown defence.
The general belief out there is that the Habs veteran can fetch a second-round pick from any team. Where does he go? Well, teams going for the Stanley Cup are going to want to shore up their centre depth to compete with Pittsburgh. The Winnipeg Jets may fit the bill. Plekanec could be an upgrade over Matt Hendricks, who is also a pending UFA at the end of the season.
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It would take some salary retention to make it work, and the Jets have the picks Montreal would want if they can pull it off. Other teams in on Plekanec haven’t been revealed yet, but they most likely will when trade talk heats up on Monday. With the demand now being as high as it is, it may not be until the final hour of the deadline for him to get traded.
Perhaps Marc Bergevin could get a little more than a single pick, but that’s just wishful thinking.
Tonight’s game against the Tampa Bay Lightning may be Plekanec’s last in a Habs uniform. The Habs could also follow in the Rangers’ footsteps and choose to sit him to avoid any injury or tweak. Either way, it’ll be interesting to see how all of this plays out. The stars are starting to align a little bit for the Habs and getting a decent return for Plekanec could make the blow that is the season easier to deal with.
Where do you think the Habs will trade Plekanec to? Can they get more than a second? Let us know in the comments below.