Montreal Canadiens: A new name in the left-wing market with Artemi Panarin
By Omar L
The Montreal Canadiens are going to have competition on the trade front for left wingers as the Columbus Blue Jackets have made Artemi Panarin available.
Tuesday was a wild day for the NHL. It started with Mike Hoffman getting bounced to San Jose, and then to the Florida Panthers not too long afterwards. The move benefitted the Montreal Canadiens as a left winger was taken off of the trade bait list. Teams who wanted to add some serious goal scoring to their roster could then look no further than Max Pacioretty.
But the craziness of the day continued once news broke about Artemi Panarin. Elliotte Friedman tweeted that the Columbus Blue Jackets are testing the market on the 26-year-old after he told the organization he wasn’t ready to discuss contract negotiations. Panarin has one more year left on his deal that will see him make $6 million.
He started his NHL career with the Chicago Blackhawks that saw him score 30 goals in back-to-back seasons. Many assumed that it was as a result of playing with Patrick Kane. The theory was put to the test once Chicago traded him to Columbus for Brandon Saad. Panarin had a career year scoring 27 goals and 55 assists in 81 games. Safe to say that the Russian winger is really good and didn’t need Kane as much as people thought.
Blue Jackets GM Jarmo Kekäläinen voiced his desire to keep Panarin in town. At the same time, if there’s an uncertainty of his future in Columbus, getting value for him is a much better option.
This throws a wrench in the Habs plans. Although Pacioretty is an established sniper and makes less money, the dynamic aspect of Panarin’s game makes him the hotter commodity. On the other hand, the fact that many teams will be in on him could drive up the price.
Perhaps so much that Bergevin’s ask, whatever that may be, isn’t as bad.
The next few days are going to be very interesting in the NHL. There aren’t any guarantees here, but Panarin’s availability has a massive impact on a Pacioretty trade for better or for worse.
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