The Montreal Canadiens are coming to a point where something has to give. Even with Evgenii Dadonov being shifted to the Injured Reserve (IR), the Habs are operating with a surplus of forwards. The roster stands at 23 in total, with a 14-7-2 layout.
Before the Montreal Canadiens activated Joel Edmundson, they were operating with 15-6-2 as their roster construction. With 14-15 forwards consistently, the Habs may need to pull the trigger on a move.
This leaves things up to General Manager (GM) Kent Hughes to start working the phones. As the Habs move forward, Hughes needs to see if he can pull something off. The organization is in a tough spot, so it will take work, but it could be crucial.
Kent Hughes needs to work the phones for the Montreal Canadiens.
With a goal of keeping the team’s young players together in Montreal, working the phones to move a veteran player seems like the smart play. While I originally labeled Dadonov as the next man out the door, he has since been moved to the IR, which could stall some trade talks.
But, then again, Dadonov and Hughes were spotted talking to one another in Minnesota. So there could be a move coming. The bottom line is Hughes needs to be working the phones to try and make a trade.
If it’s not Dadonov, other prime candidates to be moved are Jonathan Drouin and Sean Monahan due to their contract status. Moving Monahan seems counterproductive at the moment, but it makes sense with their contract status.
Even though the Habs have been using Mike Hoffman more efficiently in 2022-23, a step forward from the 2021-22 season, he could be on the list of players that Hughes is shopping. Hughes needs to be working the phones no matter what the outcome is.
The earliest Dadonov can return is next Tuesday, so it buys some time, and maybe his time on the IR gets extended, but a return and demotion of a defenseman bring the Habs back to the 15-forward mark, which brings reason to assume a trade could be coming.
It cannot be crazy to think that a trade could be coming. Hughes has stuck his neck out aplenty with the Habs. Expecting him to make keep making decisions that go against the grain or result in a move that may not have been expected.
A trade could be coming for the Habs organization, but time will tell.