The Montreal Canadiens are still searching for an answer at center behind Nick Suzuki, and it is unlikely they will find that answer among the unrestricted free agents. However, one restricted free agent that would be a perfect fit is Dallas Stars' Mavrik Bourque.
Bourque is a former first-round pick who just finished his second full-season in the NHL with the Stars. After 25 points in his rookie season, he made a big jump with 41 points after almost doubling his goal total from 11 to 20.
The Canadiens are clearly very particular about who they go after, and the focus is on finding younger players who are just entering the prime of their career, who can develop alongside this impressive core they have. Bourque certainly fits that description, and Kent Hughes shouldn't be worried about offering a long-term deal if they were able to add him.
Montreal Canadiens have some options in how they could acquire Mavrik Bourque
Where the challenge lies for the Canadiens is how they could bring Bourque to Montreal. He is a restricted free agent, and Elliotte Friedman even noted that Bourque might be a candidate for an offer sheet this summer.
Unfortunately for the Canadiens, the only offer sheets they could extend are ones with an AAV over $11.94 million or under $4.775 million, due to the draft pick compensation. The Canadiens don't have their 2027 third-round pick, so any contract with an AAV between $4.775 and $11.94 million wouldn't be an option.
They could offer a contract with an AAV of $4,775,665, but it is hard to imagine that the Dallas Stars wouldn't match that.
In theory, this only leaves the option of working out a trade with the Dallas Stars, and they seem to be in a holding pattern until there is some resolution with Jason Robertson. If the Stars were to lose Jason Robertson, they would likely want to re-sign Bourque, but if they keep Robertson, then they won't have the cap space to sign Bourque, and a trade with the Montreal Canadiens could make sense.
Mavrik Bourque is a young, ascending player who could be a perfect fit on the second line at center next to Ivan Demidov. For the Montreal Canadiens, he is a player worth keeping an eye on over the next few days to see how everything else settles out.
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