Canadiens: Three Questions Kent Hughes Needs to Answer Today

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The Montreal Canadiens made one of the first big splashes of trade season when they dealt Tyler Toffoli to the Calgary Flames.

They received a first round pick in the 2022 NHL Draft as well as prospect Emil Heineman, veteran Tyler Pitlick and a fifth round pick in return. The trade was done over a month ahead of the trade deadline and it looked like it might signal a busy few weeks for the Canadiens.

Their new general manager Kent Hughes took over a ship that was stuck at the bottom of the NHL standings and had his work cut out for him to try and right things.

Though the early Toffoli trade appeared to be a sign of things to come, the only trade the Canadiens made since then was the obvious deal involving Ben Chiarot. A pending unrestricted free agent with a ton of value on the market was eventually dealt to the Florida Panthers for a first round pick, Ty Smilanic and a fourth round pick.

When Toffoli was dealt, some fans thought we may be on the verge of a fire sale. Who was going to be next? Josh Anderson? Brendan Gallagher? Jeff Petry? Was Carey Price on the market as well?

We certainly haven’t seen the sell off as Hughes has been pretty quiet over the past five weeks.

It leaves him with a lot of questions to answer as we arrive here at trade deadline day. Let’s take a look at the three big questions that Hughes needs to answer by 3:00 PM EST this afternoon.

Feb 17, 2022; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Montreal Canadiens defenseman Brett Kulak. Mandatory Credit: Jean-Yves Ahern-USA TODAY Sports /

Can Hughes get a return for all of his pending UFAs?

The Canadiens current sit 32nd in the NHL standings on trade deadline day. Their chances of reaching the postseason dropped to 0% very long ago. Clearly the team is a seller and will be looking to collect more future assets in the form of draft picks and prospects that could help in a few years time.

The most obvious players to trade away are players that will be unrestricted free agents at the end of the season. There really is no need to hang on to a player who will leave as a free agent in a couple of months anyway. Why would a team that is guaranteed to miss the playoffs need a pending UFA on its roster for its final 20 games?

Ben Chiarot was a pending UFA and he was dealt to the Panthers for an impressive package of picks and prospects.

None of the Habs others upcoming UFAs will garner the same interest on the trade market, but that isn’t the point. A seller may as well deal away all of its pending UFAs and get whatever they can in return.

Something, anything, is better than nothing at all which is what they will lose these players for in July.

So, how many of them can Hughes trade today? It is a bit surprising that he hasn’t moved any other than Chiarot so far. There are six pending UFAs on the roster this morning and it will be difficult for a single general manager to make that many deals in one day.

Brett Kulak likely has the most value of all of these players. With Travis Dermott and Travis Hamonic traded for third round picks yesterday you would have to think Hughes is getting offered at least that much for Kulak. If so, he has to pull the trigger.

Chris Wideman is an offensive defenceman with 17 points in 49 games this season. The Canadiens gave up a 7th round pick for Erik Gustafsson last season who was scoring at the same rate. If anyone offers the same for Wideman today, the Canadiens may as well take it. They have drafted Cayden Primeau, Rafael Harvey-PInard, Jake Evans and Brett Stapley in the 7th round in the past few years, so why not add another late pick instead of losing the player for nothing?

Mathieu Perreault recently passed through waivers so his value isn’t high. Oddly though, sometimes having passed through waivers already adds to a players value. Now, a team can acquire him and send him down to the AHL for some added depth. No one is going to make a big offer, but a 6th or 7th round pick might be offered up and there is no reason to say no.

Same with Laurent Dauphin. He has played fine this season when called up but isn’t likely to stick around long term at the NHL level. If an offer, any offer, comes along, the Canadiens should take it.

Tyler Pitlick hasn’t played a game for the Canadiens yet, but he was traded for a 4th round pick before the season began. Someone may offer a late pick and again, anything is better than nothing at this point.

The only other soon-to-be UFA on the roster is Andrew Hammond. I can’t see anyone making an offer for him just because the goaltending market isn’t a robust one, so he may not go anywhere, but if any offer at all comes along, the Canadiens need to accept.

I wouldn’t expect any big trades involving these players today, but that is six possibly future draft picks that the Canadiens could add. There is really no reason to keep these players, but how many will Hughes be able to move today is a big question he needs to answer.

May 3, 2021; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Montreal Canadiens right wing Joel Armia and defenseman Jeff Petry. Mandatory Credit: Jean-Yves Ahern-USA TODAY Sports /

Can Kent Hughes clear any cap space for next season?

While trading away players whose contracts end in a couple of months is an easy decision for the general manager of a seller, moving someone with term on their contract is tougher to pull off.

Most buyers at this time of the season have little, or no, cap space. Trying to make trades work is a tough task for the accountants than the hockey people these days.

Today, more than any other day of the year, is when every dollar under the salary cap is most precious. Teams are more aware about salary cap limitations today than any other day of the year. So, they aren’t too keen on taking on a player with three or four years left on their contracts with a hefty cap hit.

Unfortunately for Hughes, the Canadiens suddenly have plenty of veteran players who are, or will soon be, on the wrong side of 30 and are signed long term. If the Canadiens want to do anything in free agency this summer, they will have to move out a couple of these contracts. This doesn’t necessarily have to happen today, but it would surely help as the management team puts together its offseason plan to improve the team for next season.

So, will a player like Jeff Petry be traded? That would clear up $6.25 million in cap space for the next three seasons.

What about Joel Armia? The Canadiens could use that $3.4 million for the next three seasons.

Mike Hoffman’s $4.5 million cap hit for the next two seasons seems a bit high as he continues to try and find a good fit on this team after 62 games played.

Jake Allen’s $2.875 million cap hit for next season isn’t a problem, but with a weak goaltending market, will someone make a great offer for him?

It seems less likely that Brendan Gallagher, Christian Dvorak, Joel Edmundson, David Savard, Carey Price or Josh Anderson will be moved at the deadline, but they would free up a lot of wiggle room for the team in the future if they do get moved.

So, how many of these players get dealt before this evening? Probably not many, but even just one would give the Canadiens some flexibility in the offseason to improve the team.

Oct 3, 2018; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Montreal Canadiens Artturi Lehkonen. Mandatory Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports /

What will he do with Artturi Lehkonen?

The biggest question that Hughes needs to answer today does not pertain to a pending UFA nor a player with term on his contract.

Huh?

Artturi Lehkonen is neither because his contract will be up at the end of the season but he is a restricted free agent. This means the Habs have the right to extend him an offer sheet worth $2.3 million and retain his rights.

But it might never get close to that.

Lehkonen has a lot of value on the current trade market and could fetch a huge return if he is dealt today. He is an elite defensive winger who is on pace for his first 40 point season ever. At 26 years old, he is hinting at the fact he could be a terrific second line winger for the next few seasons and not just a bottom six piece.

Do the Canadiens deal him because another team offers a first round pick and a decent prospect? Or do they keep him?

The big question really is what will his next contract look like? If he is willing to sign a four year extension at $2.5 million, he is worth keeping around. If he wants $4 million per year because of the offence he is bringing this season, it might make sense to move him now.

What to do with Lehkonen? There will surely be interest in him right down to the wire. Will Hughes keep him or deal him to a contender?

That’s the biggest question the Canadiens general manager needs to answer today.

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