According to Darren Dreger, there have been early contract talks with Max Pacioretty, and interest for a Tomas Plekanec return to the Montreal Canadiens.
Insider Trading is always one of the best platforms to get the inside scoop on the NHL. Fortunately for Montreal Canadiens fans, there was some information surrounding the team.
The Max Pacioretty era has had some interesting developments since the initial report came from Nick Kypreos that Marc Bergevin was aggressively shopping him. It transitioned to their being a lot of interest around the team captain, but the price scared teams away. Pacioretty voiced his love for the team and his desire to remain a Montreal Canadien at the end of the season, but another report came out that the team would re-start efforts to move him at the draft.
The latest from TSN‘s Darren Dreger has added a new layer to the cake. Apparently Pacioretty and his agent Pat Brisson have had early talks on the makeup of a possible extension. This doesn’t mean that the 29-year-old is safe or that a deal is made in the end.
The push from Brisson definitely mirrors Pacioretty’s wants, but Bergevin can still decide to move on from him at the draft.
Tomas Plekanec was the next part of the Montreal Canadiens TV spot. Pierre LeBrun took over at that area in that there is mutual interest for his return. What stood out was that re-signing Plekanec wasn’t a huge priority for Montreal but something they may look into doing.
That might hit a nerve a bit as the 35-year-old has mentioned on many occasions that the Montreal Canadiens are his priority. It’s still the same mentality fans have had for weeks now. The best scenario for everyone would be to have Plekanec return to the Habs and play that 1000th game. However, it’ll be difficult to find a fit for him.
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Those are both questions that will be answered in the next month. The cost of re-signing Pacioretty will be high regardless of his performance this season. Additionally, trading him may bring better value long-term.