Montreal Canadiens: Trade rumours or not, Max Pacioretty needs to play

Montreal Canadiens captain Max Pacioretty had another successful day raising money for a good cause, and now it’s time for him to hit the ice.

There was a huge turnout at Max Pacioretty‘s Captain’s Tournament. It’s an annual event that takes place at Club de golf La Vallée du Richelieu in Sainte-Julie to raise money for Canadiens Children’s Foundation and the Montreal General Hospital. Current Montreal Canadiens players and staff were there including Jonathan Drouin, Charles Hudon, Marc Bergevin, and Dominique Ducharme to name a few.

But although the day was for the most part about the fundraiser, Pacioretty’s future with the Montreal Canadiens was a clear topic. Not very surprising as that was something to be expected once the report came out that the Habs had apparently no intentions of re-signing Pacioretty. According to quotes from the 29-year-old, as well as his agent Allan Walsh, the two camps have talked over the course of the summer, but none of the negotiations have revolved around a new contract.

So it looks like the top narrative that will continue to be revolved around the Canadiens is when will Pacioretty be moved. Drouin, having experience with trade rumours, shared some thoughts on the situation saying:

"I think he’s handled it pretty well so far. Sometimes, it’s nice to just not hear anyone, talk about what’s going on in life and other things. He looks like he’s had a good mind, and a good summer as well."

There’s still a chance that Bergevin can come to terms with their team captain and get an extension written down in the history books. Pacioretty has made it clear that he loves the city and playing for the Montreal Canadiens and even though it appears that there’s bad blood, sticking around would be a possibility.

All he needs to do now is lace up his skates and play. It’ll be a big year ahead of him, and similarly to Carey Price, Pacioretty has to show that the 2017-18 season was a one-off fluke. The numbers point towards that conclusion but putting up the numbers he’s used to having will silence a lot of the pessimism on that front.

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