7 Trade Deadline Targets for the Montreal Canadiens

The Montreal Canadiens have been a new team under Martin St. Louis, winning five games in a row, but they remain sellers at the deadline. This editorial looks at seven young players and prospects they could target.

There is a notion that only deadline-day buyers target specific players; they are, after all, the proactive teams trying to nab the big assets. Sellers, however, can target players too. They don’t have quite as much freedom as buyers, as they can only target players within the organizations of teams that want to buy players for a playoff run, but they can still target particular prospects or young players; the Canadiens have done and will continue to do just this.

The Kent Hughes/Jeff Gorton regime has already demonstrated this, as they targeted Emil Heineman specifically in the Tyler Toffoli trade with the Flames, as they really valued his speed, physicality, and hockey IQ. They will employ the exact same strategy with the trades that will inevitably come in the next three weeks, prior to the 3:00 PM EST deadline on March 21. Some of those targetted names will be the primary pieces in the return, while others will be secondary, as Heineman was. Let’s take a look at seven names that fit either of these categories, the first four will be young players with NHL experience who the Habs can buy low on, while the last three are prospects with upside that would be worthwhile swings as trade targets.

Maxime Comtois

Comtois is a name most hockey fans are familiar with, unlike other players we will look at. He had a breakout campaign last year, scoring 16 goals and 33 points in 55 games (a 24-goal, 49-point pace). He is also known for his heroics at the 2019 Men’s World Junior Championships. Comtois is a 6’2″, 216 lbs left-winger, which is a position of weakness for the Canadiens. Oh, and did I mention he’s a Longueuil native? The Habs would certainly not be averse to acquiring a 23-year-old ‘tit gars d’ché nous.

But why would the Ducks want to trade a young responsible forward who produced so well? Well, he has been a healthy scratch for the past three games at the time of writing and has scored just 2 goals and 6 points through 31 games. However, he has shot at just 4.55% this year. His career shooting percentage prior to this season (through 94 games) was 17.04%. While a shooting percentage that high may very well have been bound to regress, 4.55% is the outlier in his career, not the other way around.

Kent Hughes stated in his introductory press conference that he planned on selling high and buying low. Comtois would be a player to buy low on, the emergences of Trevor Zegras, Troy Terry, and Sonny Milano as top-6 forwards have rendered him expendable. While acquiring Comtois would likely be a trade in which the Canadiens are the “buyers”, it would be made adjacent to a corresponding “selling” trade involving a player like Artturi Lehkonen.

Comtois could likely be acquired for the relative bargain price of a second-round draft pick, the negotiation would be over which second-round pick Anaheim would acquire: the Canadiens’ own, or one they acquire between now and the deadline, which would be bound to be a less valuable trade chip.

Filip Chytil

Continuing with the players the Canadiens could target to buy low on, Filip Chytil was the 21st overall pick in 2017 and has scored 39 goals and 83 points in 223 games with the Rangers. Last season, he put up 8 goals and 22 points in 42 games (a pace of 15 goals and 43 points) while averaging just 13:14 a night. This season hasn’t gone as smoothly, however, as Chytil has scored just 5 goals and 12 points in 41 games. The Czech centreman may not be relied upon for important faceoffs – his 43.27% this year is a career-high – but his skill is undeniable and could be fostered under Martin St. Louis.

Despite this skill, Chytil has frustrated Rangers fans with his inconsistency and finds himself on the list of players the Rangers could move to acquire assets for their playoff run. Along with the skill, the Canadiens should be interested in him as he is having a down year production-wise (making him expendable and tanking his value) and is underperforming his average shooting percentage. His 6.33% this year is quite a bit lower than his previous career average of 9.88%. His PDO of .981 also demonstrates the lack of bounces he’s received (and that in front of Hart-worthy goaltending with Shesterkin).

While Chytil’s value in the eyes of Chris Drury is unknown, we do know that the Rangers have an interest in Artturi Lehkonen, who is having a career year and who would represent a clear “sell high” candidate, especially since he will demand a healthy raise in his final RFA year this offseason. Jeff Gorton was the GM that drafted Chytil and could be interested in re-acquiring the skilled forward. The match for a trade between these two teams is clear, but the composition of this theoretical trade is about to become a bit more complex…

Vitali Kravtsov

Kravtsov’s name has circled around the rumour mill since the summer, and his profile is certainly an intriguing one: a 6’2″, 189 lbs left-shot RW who was drafted 9th overall in 2018… by Jeff Gorton. Kravtsov plays a gritty game and is unafraid of imposing himself physically, but his shot, speed, and hands are what made him such a valued commodity on draft day.

However, the fit between the Rangers and Kravtsov has clearly not been ideal, as Kravtsov scored just 2 goals and 4 points in 20 games last season and has spent this season on loan in the KHL after refusing to report to the Rangers’ AHL affiliate in Hartford; he has scored 6 goals and 13 points in 19 KHL games this year.

The Rangers are not dealing from a position of strength; Kravtsov has yet to produce at the NHL level, has voiced his desire to be traded, and hasn’t lit the KHL alight this year. His value is likely similar to that of a second-round draft pick. Could a trade involving Lehkonen net the Canadiens both Chytil and Kravtsov in a huge swing for the fences based on pure skill and trust in Martin St. Louis? I think it’s within the realm of possibility. If you think this is unrealistic from the Habs’ perspective, think of how greatly Chris Drury values hard-working middle-six wingers; he signed Barclay Goodrow to a six-year deal with a $3.64 million AAV, and he dealt first-line forward Pavel Buchnevich to St. Louis for Sammy Blais and a 2nd in a terrible trade.

Morgan Frost

With the Philadelphia Flyers reportedly being a good fit for Jeff Petry (per Elliotte Friedman), and with Petry’s form making a turnaround under Martin St. Louis, Habs fans have been sifting through the Flyers’ prospect pool to find potential targets. While players like Bobby Brink and Cam York would each be a tremendous get for the Habs, the Habs would need to add in order to acquire York and would probably not get any asset other than Brink if they target him. Morgan Frost, on the other hand, has fallen out of favour in the organization, despite possessing tremendous skill and could be acquired as a part of a package rather than on his own… sound familiar? Kent Hughes said that he’d buy low, so we are looking exclusively at players that fit that mould.

The 6’0″, 185 lbs centreman is extremely comfortable with the puck, possessing very good puck skills, and his cerebral nature allows him to find small openings to exploit by skating or passing through. He was an elite OHL player, having been the 27th overall pick in 2017, but his game just hasn’t clicked at the NHL-level just yet, which is certainly influenced by the fact that he hasn’t been given consistent minutes or linemates. He has excelled in the AHL this year, however, having produced 5 goals and 18 points in 20 games.

Despite this, Flyers fans and the organization as a whole are becoming impatient with Frost, who turns 23 in May, and he may be deemed an expendable asset. If this is the case, he is the young Flyers player Jeff Gorton and Kent Hughes should target as the primary piece of a Jeff Petry trade. Oh, and it doesn’t hurt that Frost is a longtime friend of Nick Suzuki’s.

Carter Savoie

While Carter Savoie may live in the shadow of his younger brother Matthew – a projected top-10 pick this year – he is still one of the most intriguing prospects in the league. He was drafted 100th overall in the fourth round in 2020 by the Edmonton Oilers despite putting up 53 goals and 99 points in 54 AJHL games on a powerhouse Sherwood Park team.

The 5’9″, 190 lbs LW has always had an abundance of offensive skill: he has a great shot, has the ability to get into positions to use it, has great hands and has playmaking upside as well, but he fell because he put in no effort defensively, had a wonky and inefficient skating stride, and was just about the ultimate boom or bust prospect.

As things are trending now, however, Savoie is looking a whole lot more like a boom than he was on draft day in 2020. He has certainly been producing at a high level in college with Denver, having put up 31 goals and 56 points in 54 games over the past two seasons, but that was to be expected. What is more impressive is how he has worked on his off-puck game in all three zones.

He is no longer the unidimensional player that was painful to watch in the defensive zone. He is clearly in better shape, has worked on his reads, and is far more physically engaging, all of which give him some value in defensive situations. Don’t be mistaken, offence is still the name of the game with Savoie, but in order to be projectable to pro hockey, he needed to round out his game, which he has done.

So with this upward trajectory and the possibility of him developing into a second-line, first powerplay unit sniper, why would Edmonton trade him? Well, the Oilers need to make an impact in the playoffs this year in order to keep their two superstars happy. In order to do that, they need to find a way to concede fewer goals, be it by improving their defence or their goaltending. If they choose to fix the latter, Jake Allen could very well be an ideal target, as he has performed well behind an inconsistent-at-best Habs’ defence and is on a cheap contract.

It certainly isn’t far-fetched that the Oilers decide to part with a prospect who isn’t amongst their three most valuable to acquire this asset that they desperately need – Savoie doesn’t have the value of Edmonton’s three previous first-round picks: Philip Broberg, Dylan Holloway, or Xavier Bourgault. The Canadiens could also be quite interested in Savoie as they have kept a close eye on Denver over the past few years, as their own prospect, Brett Stapley, plays there and his rights expire this offseason. The fit for a trade seems quite good here.

Simon Robertsson

The Canadiens and Blues have been in the rumour mill for a potential trade for quite a while now, mainly revolving around Ben Chiarot, but St. Louis’ interest in Artturi Lehkonen goes back a few seasons too. If the Blues end up being the team prepared to give up the biggest package for any of the players the Habs are willing to sell, the prospect I would target would be Simon Robertsson. The 6’0″, 190 lbs left-shot RW was projected to be a first-round pick in 2021 (and I still believe he should have gone there) but fell into the Blues’ lap in the third round, mainly due to his unspectacular performance at the U18 World Championships, which was the only time most teams got to watch him play in person.

Robertsson is a high-floor prospect, the likelihood of him becoming at least a valuable third-liner is quite high, and the upside to be a second-line swiss army knife scorer is there. His shot is a real weapon, and he processes the game at a high speed and makes the right plays consistently. Think of him as a similar profile to Emil Heineman but with a bit more upside, less speed, and a better shot. While he isn’t the most dynamic player, his off-puck movement gets him into positions to make use of his biggest weapon.

While the Blues have two prospects that will be valued far more by the team in Jake Neighbours and Zachary Bolduc, I think acquiring either of them would be buying high on a player with only slightly higher upside than Robertsson, whereas the Swede could be had at a relatively affordable price, substituting a second or third-round draft pick in a trade. Last draft, there were two players I ranked firmly within my first round that fell to the third round: Stanislav Svozil and Simon Robertsson. I would very much like to see the Canadiens acquire Robertsson in a trade with the Blues.