The Montreal Canadiens greatest rival in signing Matt Duchene
By Omar L
Matt Duchene is likely on the Montreal Canadiens list on July 1st, and the Nashville Predators will be their main competitor on that front.
As of 12:01 AM EST on June 23rd, NHL teams were able to approach pending free agents in preparation for July 1st when they can get them signed. It’s an ongoing process, especially for some of the highly touted players available. Reports are out already that Tampa Bay Lightning’s Anton Stralman is set to meet with a number of teams this week while Artemi Panarin and Sergei Bobrovsky have a meeting lined up with Dale Tallon and the Florida Panthers. As for the Montreal Canadiens, there is one name they’ll likely be sitting down with, and that is Matt Duchene.
It’s going to be an end of an era between the Habs and Duchene. Either he joins the team, completing the circle of endless rumours and trade speculations for years, or he signs elsewhere ending that narrative completely (assuming he has a no-movement clause on his deal then in that case, we’ll see you in 2023!).
Pat Brisson, Duchene’s agent, is getting ready to host his client’s ‘play for me’ party at the CAA office in Los Angeles soon. John Tavares had the same kind of treatment last summer meeting with the likes of the Toronto Maple Leafs, New York Islanders, Dallas Stars, and San Jose Sharks before choosing to sign with his hometown team.
As for Duchene, there isn’t an official list out there, but the Montreal Canadiens are one of the two teams we know will for sure get a meeting. The other will be the Nashville Predators who will be Montreal’s main competitor in this free agency battle.