The Montreal Canadiens suffered a massive blow when Alex Newhook went down with a fractured ankle and he is slated to miss significant time. But, they are too good of a team to refrain from making a blockbuster move that would bring in immediate help to alleviate the void that Newhook will leave.
Newhook has been one of the Canadiens' better forwards, with six goals and 12 points in 17 games. Add to the fact that the Canadiens are also without Patrik Laine, and their forward group looks even thinner, so there needs to be an immediate trade for a player who can produce the second he lands in Montreal.
The obvious choice here is Jordan Kyrou, who has nine points and five goals through 16 games with the St. Louis Blues. Kyrou, who was a healthy scratch earlier in the season, has been rumored to potentially be on the move. So if the price is right, there's a good chance Blues' general manager Doug Armstrong will make a trade.
Jordan Kyrou to the Canadiens makes sense
For one, Kyrou fits what the Canadiens are trying to do. They're building a young team for long-term success, and at 27, Kyrou is young enough to fit into their plans. The Canadiens have already established themselves as a high-scoring team, and Kyrou is reliable enough to put up 30-plus goals a season.
If you put him on a team that already has point-per-game forwards like Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield, plus a brewing star in Ivan Demidov, imagine what the Canadiens will be capable of when they have the puck with Kyrou in the mix. And when they do get the likes of Laine and Newhook back later in the year, they would give even the best defensive-minded teams nightmares.
Let's also not forget about Zack Bolduc, who had a monster start to the season. While Bolduc has cooled off, he and Kyrou would have chemistry since they were teammates for two seasons in St. Louis. The Canadiens made a hockey trade this past summer for Bolduc when they sent Logan Mailloux to St. Louis in exchange for the hard-hitting forward.
It isn't an easy road to obtain Jordan Kyrou
Jordan Kyrou is currently on a full no-trade clause, so he must agree to a trade if the Blues were to send him to Quebec. But if you're Kyrou, you have to consider the situations both teams find themselves in.
The Blues look like they're going nowhere in 2025-26, and at 27, a player of Kyrou's caliber has got to be craving a better situation than what he's getting in St. Louis. Meanwhile, the Canadiens have shown they can bust into the playoffs and have that high-octane play continue into the following season, something that didn't happen with the Blues.
While a full no-trade clause is in place, Montreal is further ahead than the Blues, and they may even widen the gap if Armstrong starts trading veterans and instituting either a retool or a rebuild as he caps off his career as the Blues' general manager.
Kyrou would join a team that can score, he'll have a familiar face in Zack Bolduc, and he could be going from one of the worst teams in hockey to one of the better teams. In short, if the Blues inform Kyrou that the Canadiens are interested, he should waive his no-trade clause without hesitation.