Regardless of the reason, the Montreal Canadiens must make more deals

Trades are one of the few ways to improve a roster, but the Montreal Canadiens need to make some deals to lessen their contract total.

Why do teams make trades? Nine times out of ten, it will be to strengthen their roster, and in most cases, ahead of a hopeful cup run. Other times teams make a move because a situation with a player isn’t working whether it’s a financial or personnel fit. The Montreal Canadiens have made both kinds of deals so far this season, but given how the books look, they’ll have to make some moves to lighten things up.

This doesn’t have to do with the salary cap. The Habs have $7.47 million left in cap space after signing Ben Chiarot and Nick Cousins. There aren’t any worries there even though the number will decrease as the likes of Artturi Lehkonen and Joel Armia are extended.

What the Habs are getting close to is their contract limit. All teams can have a maximum of 50 contracts on the books at any given time. The Montreal Canadiens are currently at 44 contracts but assuming all four restricted free agents are signed, including Charles Hudon and Michael McCarron, the team will then be at 48.

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That’s awfully close, and it could limit Marc Bergevin a little as the offseason continues.

What if Bergevin wants to sign some more depth for the Laval Rocket so the team can improve and contend for a playoff spot, but they only want an NHL deal. The major vs. minor contract distinction tends to lead to a number of fallouts between player and organization. It won’t make or break the organization to lose on players who fall in this scenario, but it is something to consider.

Thinking about it now, that could be another reason as to why the Andrew Shaw and Nicolas Deslauriers deals were so beneficial. Not only were the Habs able to clear cap space, but they moved out two more contracts off the books.

That could be where making a trade for a big restricted free agent helps the Montreal Canadiens. Say if Patrik Laine was the target. It would likely take picks but also multiple players, perhaps as high as three contracts, to get a deal done that makes sense for both sides.

If the Habs instead choose to dial back the scale a bit, moving Hudon or Matthew Peca to name a few wouldn’t be too difficult.

This isn’t the first time the Montreal Canadiens have been close to the limit. However, you never know what can come up, and it would be a shame to see the Habs tied it because of it.