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Montreal Canadiens: Free Agents Habs Should Target to Play With Shane Wright

By Ken MacMillan

Apr 2, 2022; Tampa, Florida, USA; Ondrej Palat. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 2, 2022; Tampa, Florida, USA; Ondrej Palat. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /
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Apr 2, 2022; Tampa, Florida, USA; Ondrej Palat. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 2, 2022; Tampa, Florida, USA; Ondrej Palat. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /

Ondrej Palat

Someone with a little more experience than Mikheyev would be more ideal. A left winger that can kill penalties, play against tough competition, score 20-25 goals and just play a strong two-way game is what is necessary.

It doesn’t hurt if they also have two (maybe three) recent Stanley Cup wins on their resume. Ondrej Palat surely fits that description.

The 31 year old has played his entire NHL career with the Tampa Bay Lightning, but he looks to be their next victim of the salary cap. After losing Yanni Gourde, Blake Coleman and Barclay Goodrow following last season’s Stanley Cup win, the Lightning really still don’t have the cap space to keep Palat either.

He does have a strong resume, and scored 31 points in 48 playoff games en route to getting his name on the Stanley Cup twice. But with stronger wingers like Johnny Gaudreau, Filip Forsberg, Bryan Rust and Claude Giroux about to be free agents as well, Palat isn’t going to get the biggest contract of the offseason.

He scored 18 goals and 49 points in 77 games this season, but his experience and defensive game are invaluable as well. Getting a strong two-way veteran like Palat to act as a safety net on a line with Wright would be a great situation for a first overall pick.

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