Montreal Canadiens: Five Players That Need To Go

I think it’s safe to say, enough is enough when it comes to Jonathan Drouin.

Granted, expectations probably wouldn’t have been so high if he wasn’t traded for Mikhail Sergachev. Also being drafted third overall in a draft that featured the likes of Seth Jones, Darnell Nurse, Bo Horvat and Anthony Mantha picked after him, doesn’t help his case either.

That being said however, the soon to be 28 year old has had a plethora of chances to prove his worth in the NHL. After showing signs of absolute dominance in the QMJHL, Drouin has proven to be an injury prone player with 20 goal per season potential. This is a player that both in Tampa Bay and Montreal was given the opportunity to express his talents and become the player he can be, but instead a mix of ego and unwillingness to work has made a frustratingly inconsistent player.

https://twitter.com/mndamico/status/1520452832503255052?s=20&t=UgRzVFbmB-8yPw46rgXAgw

Drouin is set to enter the final year of his contract next season at a $5.5 million cap hit. Unless the Canadiens chose to give him one last chance at redemption, buying his contract out would be the best option. A buyout would give the team a $1,833,334 cap penalty for 2022-23 and 2023-24 therefore actually saving money by buying him out.

We’ve tried, it didn’t work. Time to move on once and for all.