A Winning Habit
Fansided

Montreal Canadiens: Three Bold Deadline Trades That Would Set Habs Up For Decade of Success

By Ken MacMillan

DETROIT, MICHIGAN - FEBRUARY 18: Jeff Petry #26 of the Montreal Canadiens celebrates his first-period goal with teammates Tomas Tatar #90 and Nick Cousins #21 while playing the Detroit Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena on February 18, 2020 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
DETROIT, MICHIGAN - FEBRUARY 18: Jeff Petry #26 of the Montreal Canadiens celebrates his first-period goal with teammates Tomas Tatar #90 and Nick Cousins #21 while playing the Detroit Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena on February 18, 2020 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
2 of 4
Next
Montreal Canadiens
NEWARK, NJ – FEBRUARY 4: Tomas Tatar #90 of the Montreal Canadiens waits for a face off in an NHL hockey game against the New Jersey Devils on February 4, 2020 at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Paul Bereswill/Getty Images) /

Acquire a future first round pick from the Pacific Division

The Montreal Canadiens division has been fairly easy to predict the past few years. I mean, was anyone really going out on a limb when they picked the Tampa Bay Lightning, Boston Bruins and Toronto Maple Leafs to be the top three teams in the Atlantic right now?

The same can not be said for the Pacific Division. I don’t know if any of those teams are any good. The Vancouver Canucks rebuild is finally bearing fruit and they will be good in the future. The Vegas Golden Knights aren’t getting phenomenal goaltending anymore and suddenly look less invincible. The Edmonton Oilers have the two best players in the world but not much else. The Calgary Flames have been going with the same core for years that isn’t great. The Arizona Coyotes?

The three California teams are terrible. We do know that. But the other five teams in the division? They could finish first in the Pacific and go to the Western Conference Final or they could drop to 11th in the west before the postseason begins.

Figuring out who is going to do well in that division is difficult. Trying to decide what will happen in that division next year is impossible. That is why the Canadiens should be targeting the Pacific specifically and try to pry a first round pick out of the division, even if it is not until the 2021 NHL Draft.

The Arizona Coyotes and Vancouver Canucks already traded their firsts in the upcoming draft. The plan could backfire big time on the Coyotes who are barely hanging on to a playoff spot right now and have played more games than everyone else in the conference.

The division is a mess and promises to be a mess again next year. That’s why the Canadiens should try to acquire a first round pick from a Pacific Division team in 2021. Look at what is happening to the San Jose Sharks right now. They traded their 2020 first round pick for Erik Karlsson well over a year ago. They are one of the worst teams in the league now and are handing the Ottawa Senators a top five pick.

If the Canadiens acquire a first round pick in 2020 from a contender, they know it will be late in the draft. If they acquire a first round pick from a Pacific Division team in 2021, it could be anywhere in the opening round of the draft.

The Edmonton Oilers are the team that is most likely to move a future first round pick. They need a winger for Connor McDavid and could make a serious run this year if they fill that void. Of course, they are still the Edmonton Oilers so they could crash and burn next year.

Home/Analysis