After a good season debut by Adam Engstrom and the expected return of Kaiden Guhle in the near future, the Montreal Canadiens were going to need to make some tough decisions on their blueline. They have made at least one of those decisions by trading Jayden Struble to the Nashville Predators for a 2027 second-round pick.
Struble was a second-round pick by the Montreal Canadiens in the 2019 NHL Draft and had played in 174 games since making his NHL debut during the 2023-24 season. During that time, he had 35 points and a +/- of +1 while averaging just under 15 minutes.
He started the first three games of the season on the third pair with Arber Xhekaj, but these two didn't work well together. Struble in the three games he played had a CF% of 43.1%, which was the fourth lowest on the Canadiens, according to Natural Stat Trick.
The initial struggles, along with his being a restricted free agent after the season, it makes perfect sense why they would look to move him now.
Montreal Canadiens bring some clarity to their blueline while setting them up for additional moves
While the Canadiens won't immediately benefit from the return, what it does is create some clarity on their roster. On Thursday against the Nashville Predators, Adam Engstrom replaced Struble on the third pair with Arber Xhekaj. These two played very well together and the Canadiens can stick with this pairing until Kaiden Guhle is ready to return.
The veteran has been practicing but hasn't been able to make his season debut after offseason surgery. However, Guhle was in a normal jersey in practice, and it seems like he will be back really soon.
By moving Struble, the Canadiens are back to seven defensemen on their roster, but it might not be the last move they make. General manager Kent Hughes has certainly been trying to add to the roster since the summer and now has an additional early draft pick to use.
Even with the trade of Struble, the Canadiens still are a little crowded on their blueline because David Reinbacher is still in Laval. When considering Alexadre Carrier and Arber Xhekaj are in the final year of their contract, the Canadiens could look to move one of those in a package along with draft picks and prospects to get an upgrade and create a little more space on the roster for Reinbacher.
When considering the value they got in return plus the extra space on their blueline, this is a win for the Montreal Canadiens no matter how this trade is looked at.
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