The Montreal Canadiens haven't jumped into the trade frenzy around the NHL, and it has been frustrating for both fans and general manager Kent Hughes. However, if they were able to add a player like Jason Robertson, there would be plenty to celebrate, and the frustration would have been worth it.
Jason Robertson is an elite player in the prime of his career who has averaged 39.2 goals per season and has had 79 or more points in each of those seasons. He is only 26 years old and set to be a restricted free agent this summer.
The big question is where Jason Robertson will accept a trade, as the Seattle Kraken had a deal in place and were offering him an 8-year contract with an AAV of $15 million. However, he turned down the contract, and the trade didn't go through.
According to some reports, Robertson would be willing to come to Montreal, and if that is true, the Canadiens must do everything they can to get a deal done. At this point, general manager Kent Hughes has two options to make that a reality.
Montreal Canadiens could sign Jason Robertson to an offer sheet
The first is pretty straightforward, and on July 1st, when free agency starts, they can sign him to an offer sheet. However, the max term the Canadiens could offer would only be seven years, and if Robertson wants the same total value the Kraken offered, Montreal would need to extend an offer sheet with an AAV over $17 million.
Regardless of what the AAV ends up being, the Canadiens are going to have to do two things prior to that. One would be to clear cap space, as they only have $10.9 million in cap space, but could clear almost $10 million by trading Brendan Gallagher and Sam Montembeault.
The other part of the offer sheet is that if the Dallas Stars don't match, they receive draft pick compensation from Montreal. There are tiers of what that compensation is based on the AAV of the offer sheet, and in this case, it would be four first-round picks.
For a team that is expecting to be in the playoffs consistently and likely picking at the back end of the first round, this might not be as much of a concern.
Montreal Canadiens could work out a trade with the Dallas Stars before July 1st
The other option, and one probably all parties would prefer, is working out a trade before July 1st when free agency begins. The Stars would trade the negotiating rights for Robertson to Montreal, and then they could sign him to an eight-year deal and add that extra year to the contract.
For the Canadiens and Stars, the question becomes what a fair trade package would look like. From the Stars' perspective, it would have to be the equivalent of four first-round picks as they are guaranteed to get that if he signs an offer sheet.
The Canadiens could probably do something like two first-round picks, Oliver Kapanen, and a top prospect like David Reinbacher. However, the Stars would probably want Michael Hage as one of the prospects, and the Canadiens seemingly have not been willing to trade him.
For a deal to be completed, the Canadiens would still need to clear that cap space to be able to sign Robertson long-term. If that does happen, it wouldn't be surprising to see Montreal make a big push to sign the Dallas Stars' forward.
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