Montreal Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes made a big trade last night when he dealt Shea Weber to the Vegas Golden Knights for Evgeni Dadonov. It doesn’t sound like he is very close to being done wheeling and dealing just yet.
The Habs do promise to be busy this offseason with 14 picks in the NHL Draft, a plethora of veteran wingers on the roster making big money, and a curious salary cap situation. Could a winger move out to clear up some cap space?
Possibly, but it sounds like yet another veteran, high priced right defenceman might move first.
Jeff Petry asked for a trade last November, but it was never granted. He wanted to be moved to a team in the United States since that is where his family was located during last season. While Covid restrictions have changed since then, Petry’s name has never really been removed from the rumour mill.
If things did ever simmer on that front, they began to percolate again this evening. Pierre Lebrun of TSN had some interesting comments about the Canadiens defender on their Insider Trading segment that dives into the behind the scenes workings of the NHL.
While he stopped short of saying a trade is imminent, he did say it is something that is being worked on. He also mentioned there are no guarantees it’ll happen, but the Dallas Stars and Detroit Red Wings are among five or six teams that have checked in on Petry recently.
A trade to the Stars would make sense as they are about to lose John Klingberg, an offensive minded right defenceman, as a free agent. The Stars were a playoff team this season and battled the Calgary Flames hard in their first round series. They aren’t just going to let a top defenceman like Klingberg leave without trying to replace him.
Petry had a tough start to last season but finished strong. He would still have plenty of trade value on the market. It sounds like there is a lot of interest so expect the Canadiens to get a good return if he is traded.
A late first round pick or a really good prospect of equal value isn’t too much to ask, especially if the Canadiens can take back a little salary in a trade. According to the insiders, this trade could happen soon. Buckle up Habs fans, it is going to be a fast-paced offseason for sure.
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