The Montreal Canadiens have a need for left shooting defensemen. The more minutes that defender is accustomed to playing, the better. Nick Leddy of the New York Islanders would be a worthy gamble.
The Montreal Canadiens head into the offseason with some specific needs to fill. They could use another top-six winger that can score goals, an upgrade as their backup goaltender. And they absolutely need to add a left shooting defenseman.
There have been a few rumours that they could be interested in signing Jake Gardiner. The Toronto Maple Leafs blue liner just narrowly avoided back surgery and didn’t look at his best in the postseason after missing time with that injury. A huge payday is in store and would be too risky for the Habs given his injury status.
Alex Edler is another possibility as an unrestricted free agent. The Vancouver Canucks defender is a left shot who can put up points but seems content to stay in Vancouver long term and see their rebuild through to the end. If he hits the open market on July 1, the Habs should be in, I just wouldn’t count on Edler still being available then.
Shayne Gostisbehere‘s name has also been tossed into the mix. The Philadelphia Flyers left shooting, smooth skating, point scoring defenseman would be an ideal fit. However, he is coming off a down season where he was exposed defensively, and his point totals dropped considerably.
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Another name has hopped into the rumour mill lately, and that is Nick Leddy. The New York Islanders have quite a bit of cap space available right now. However, they need to re-sign Anders Lee, Jordan Eberle and Robin Lehner who was one of the best goaltenders in the league this season.
To keep everybody on Long Island, they may need to shed a few salary cap dollars. They also have a bit of a changing of the guard happening on their blue line. Devon Toews proved to be NHL ready, and Adam Pelech showed he can handle more of a workload this season.
Trying to fit both of them in on the left side with Leddy and Thomas Hickey will be difficult. So, it is possible that the Islanders will decide to move on from Leddy and the last three years of his $5.5 million annual salary.
According to Darren Dreger, TSN Insider, the Isles would be willing to move Leddy’s contract to save the cap space. They would want a draft pick or prospect in return but would be happy to have the extra money to spend this summer.
Leddy is coming off a down season. He scored 26 points after reaching at least 40 for the previous three seasons. He just turned 28 and is still an excellent skater and puck mover, so there is plenty of reason to believe he could reach 35-40 points again in the near future.
Under the rule of Lou Lamoriello and Barry Trotz this season, the Islanders played a more defensive style this season which led to the reduction in points. Leddy averaged 21:33 ice time per game with the team that allowed the least goals against this season. So, even if his offence has dried up a bit, his ability to move the puck out of his zone clearly is beneficial to his team.
The Montreal Canadiens have the need for left shooting defenders. They have the cap space to bring him in, and they have a plethora of draft picks and prospects that they could offer up to entice the Islanders into a deal.
It is not difficult to see Leddy fitting in perfectly with Shea Weber. He has the defensive awareness to play against and shut down opponents top players. He also has the skating and passing abilities to get the puck to Montreal’s speedy forwards.
If the acquisition cost is a couple of second round picks or a decent prospect who doesn’t go by the name of Poehling, Suzuki, Brook, Romanov or Primeau, I’d say pull the trigger and fill that hole on left defence.