The Montreal Canadiens made a huge splash in free agency when they extended an offer sheet to Sebastian Aho. It remains to be seen if they will ever get the player or if the Carolina Hurricanes will match.
The Montreal Canadiens made some depth signings to open the free agent frenzy and then created a frenzy on their own when they inked Sebastian Aho to an offer sheet. They may have to wait until July 8th to find out if they will get Aho or if the Carolina Hurricanes will match the offer.
In the meantime, the Habs still have a few needs on their roster where they could use an upgrade. The left side of their defence is in desperate need of someone capable of playing at least 20 minutes per night. Beyond Victor Mete and Brett Kulak, they have little NHL experience in their left defencemen.
They could also use a right winger after trading Andrew Shaw to the Chicago Blackhawks for three draft picks. Shaw played well for the Canadiens last season, scoring 19 goals and 47 points in 63 games. He more than earned his $3.9 million cap hit, but with him moved out the Canadiens have tons of cap space.
They have earmarked a large portion of that cap space by signing Carolina Hurricanes center Sebastian Aho to an offer sheet. If the Hurricanes do not match the offer, Montreal will get Aho for the next five years at a cap hit of $8.45 million.
Still, the Canadiens have plenty of cap space available to sign another free agent if they wish. Once the dust settles and if the Habs take on the Aho contract, and they move veterans Dale Weise, Karl Alzner and Matthew Peca to the minors, the Habs still have close to $7 million to use next season.
So, who could they use it on today? There are still several intriguing free agents available that could improve the Canadiens in the future.