Montreal Canadiens: Hypothetical Habs Trade With Every Atlantic Division Team

Florida Panthers

The Florida Panthers are not exactly in cap trouble, but there were some rumblings earlier in the offseason they would be looking to slash payroll. That will make it difficult for them to re-sign unrestricted free agent wingers Mike Hoffman and Evgeni Dadonov.

The Panthers are in trouble because they are paying huge money to a defence that can’t defend and a goaltender who can’t stop pucks. It is a pretty dangerous combination.

The Panthers had no trouble putting pucks in the net. They were the sixth highest scoring team in the league. However, they were allowing them more than anyone other than the Ottawa Senators and Detroit Red Wings. So, they could use a great defender, or defensive centre, but there is no way Montreal trades Jeff Petry or Phillip Danault inside the division.

No, this will not be a blockbuster, but if the Canadiens play their cards right, they could come out with a major win. They already added Joel Edmundson beacuse they were willing to risk giving up a draft pick just for the right to negotiate with him. What if they made a similar trade with the Panthers?

The Habs could use a right winger who can score on the power play. They could also use a player who speaks Russian to help Alexander Romanov transition to North America. That player shouldn’t be Ilya Kovalchuk coming back, it should be Evgeni Dadonov. He could become a free agent on October 9th, so this deal would just be for his negotiating rights.