The Montreal Canadiens have started to see several key players return from injury, including Kirby Dach and Jake Evans. The big question is when Patrik Laine might be ready to return and it is seemingly one that head coach Martin St. Louis is tired of being asked. However, it is one they can't avoid and need to make a trade sooner rather than later.
Prior to the Canadiens' win over the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday, St. Louis was asked about the status of Laine. He didn't want to share much other than that he can only coach the players who are healthy, and once he hears from Jim Ramsay (director of Sports Medicine) that he can return, he will "cross that bridge" at that time.
Montreal Canadiens will want to trade Patrik Laine but won't be able to until he plays, which there in lies the dilemma
St. Louis certainly has a right to be frustrated because there isn't a clear path to Laine getting ice time. He is best suited as a Top 6 forward, and the only player that makes even a little sense is him replacing Alexandre Texier. However, Texier has been great since the Canadiens claimed him with seven goals and 10 assists in 30 games.
If Texier is the player Laine replaces, it creates a ripple effect down through the other lines because they shouldn't take him completely out of the lineup.
The goal with getting Laine on the ice is to showcase him in a potential trade, and this is probably why Martin St. Louis sounds so frustrated with the question. Right now, the lines are in a great spot, and he is getting production from top to bottom, but he runs the risk of disrupting that by trying to get Laine in the lineup.
However, if general manager Kent Hughes hopes to get anything decent in return for Laine, he has to get the player on the ice. Laine has only played in five games this season and 75 games total since the 2023-24 season due to injuries.
When he is on the ice, he is productive, though, and what the Canadiens should be selling in trade discussions. Last season, in 52 games, he had 20 goals and 13 assists with a shooting percentage of 17.2%.
He has struggled to stay on the ice, so the idea of showcasing him for five or 10 games might not even change the perception of teams around the league of what he can bring. Any team that trades for him is probably viewing him as a high-risk, high-reward player, and in those instances, the return isn't great.
Whatever the resolution is, the Canadiens have to make a move sooner rather than later, preferably before the Olympic break. At some point it becomes a distraction for the coaches and players as they are consistently asked questions about Laine.