The Montreal Canadiens emerged from the Olympic break looking to maintain their pace to secure a spot in the playoffs. They lost 4-3 in overtime to the New York Islanders on Thursday, but picked up a huge 6-2 win over the Washington Capitals on Saturday. Entering Monday, the Canadiens sat in third place in the Atlantic Division with a 33-17-9 record and 75 point through 59 games. They have a chance to help their odds of securing a spot with a big addition by the March 6 trade deadline.
Although the Canadiens have a good young core of players, they are checking in on potential trades. They are linked to top six forwards, notably to Nazem Kadri of the Calgary Flames. One name that has been brought up is Robert Thomas of the St. Louis Blues. But do they stand a realistic shot at landing the latter player? Probably not.
During an appearance on NHL on TNT on Sunday, Sportsnet NHL insider Elliotte Friedman said that even though the Canadiens have been linked to Thomas, he just doesn't see it happening.
"A lot of people this year have linked Thomas and Montreal, I'm not convinced of that," said Friedman.
Elliotte Friedman shuts down Canadiens' chances of landing Robert Thomas at trade deadline
Friedman didn't end the Canadiens' chances of acquiring Thomas just there. During his latest episode of the 32 Thoughts Podcast, released on Monday, said he had been told that a Thomas trade to Montreal just doesn't seem likely.
"I also mentioned on TNT, Thomas has been linked to Montreal. I said that a couple of people had told me, they didn't think it was going to be Montreal," said Friedman.
Friedman continued on the podcast, touching on the Canadiens' potential strategy at the trade deadline. While other reporters have indicated that this is a team that could very well stand pat and stick with the roster currently constructed, Friedman called Montreal "gatherers." Specifically, Friedman can see the Canadiens making a move for a player who will be on the Canadiens for quite some time.
"I think Montreal is a gatherer. Give us somebody that's going to be around for a while...Somebody who's going to be part of our group for a while, maybe a middling rental if they had to. But somebody who's going to be part of their group, grows with the rest of them," said Friedman.
The Canadiens have a deep pool of young talent, some of whom are already contributing in the pros. The team took a while to build this surplus of talent, so it will be hard to see them moving on from them. But with the Stanley Cup window open, it's something they'll have to do.
While some fans may have wanted Montreal to acquire Thomas, he is probably going to be the most expensive player to trade for at the trade deadline. Thomas is under contract through the 2030-31 season with an annual cap hit of $8.1 million. Plus, Thomas is one of St. Louis' top scorers, putting up 12 goals and 23 assists through 43 games. So what is the asking price?
The Blues are reportedly looking for a return that's the equivalent of three Top 15 draft picks, per Sportsnet's Nick Kypreos. It's a high asking price, and understandably so. The Blues don't want to give up one of their best players, with significant term remaining, away for nothing. Plus, Thomas has a full no-trade clause from 2026 until 2030, where it then turns into a 15-team no-trade clause.
While the Canadiens do have assets they can float for a difference-making player, it just doesn't seem like Thomas will be an option for them, based on Friedman's comments in the past couple of days.