Montreal Canadiens Should Save Assets, Claim Sami Vatanen
Montreal Canadiens general manager Marc Bergevin has transformed the Habs lineup quite a bit since the end of last season.
We saw Josh Anderson, Tyler Toffoli, Corey Perry, Joel Edmundson and Jake Allen added in the offseason. In addition, Eric Staal was picked up for third and fifth round draft picks and Jon Merrill was acquired from the Detroit Red Wings for a fifth round pick and Hayden Verbeek.
Though the Canadiens have already given up three draft picks in the upcoming draft, they still have 11 at their disposal. This includes their first round pick, two in the second round, two in the third round and three in the fourth round. Holding eight of the first 128 picks in the draft is terrific and the Habs need to hold on to that advantage.
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With Victor Mete on waivers and likely to be claimed, and Ben Chiarot injured, the Habs could use another defenceman to add some depth to the roster. However, trading away more draft picks to try and prop up a decent to mediocre team doesn’t make a lot of sense. This team isn’t one player away from being the top team in its division, let alone the entire NHL.
So, how do they add some depth to their blue line without giving up assets? That’s impossible, isn’t it?
Well, no it’s not. They just have to put in a claim on Sami Vatanen today.
Vatanen has been placed on waivers by the New Jersey Devils after not really meshing well with new head coach Lindy Ruff. It hasn’t been a great season for the Finnish defender, but he has a pretty lengthy track record as a solid two-way defender at the NHL level.
Vatanen was a fourth round pick of the Anaheim Ducks back in 2009. The 29 year old right shot defender put up some solid offensive numbers early in his career on a deep Duck blue line. He had seasons of 37 points in 67 games and a career high 38 points in 71 games in 2015-16.
He scored 23 points in 47 games with the Devils last season before being injured and then traded to the Carolina Hurricanes. He didn’t return in the regular season before it was shut down, but scored three points in seven playoff games for the Hurricanes.
This year, the Finnish defender has taken on more of a depth, defensive role. He returned to New Jersey and has played a lot of third pairing minutes with Ryan Murray. He has also been a regular on the penalty kill for the Devils. His offence has not been where we have seen it in the past, with just five points in 29 games.
Vatanen isn’t going to show up and play top four minutes like he did earlier in his career. However, with Mete likely lost, the Canadiens 6th defender right now is Otto Leskinen, until newcomer Jon Merrill shows up in a week or so after quarantining.
Next. A look back at all of Bergevin's deadlines. dark
It doesn’t make a lot of sense for the Canadiens to give up top prospects or first round picks for defencemen this season. Selecting Vatanen off waivers for nothing in return would give the team a veteran presence to fill the gaps when needed during a very busy schedule over the next month.