Don’t be afraid to make some trades
If Kent Hughes wants to do everything correctly and give those who will be part of his young core the utmost experience, he should also look to trade a few more players as soon as he gets even a remotely good offer for them.
The players and prospects listed above should have a path to the Canadiens, but let’s not forget about others who will inevitably impress the front office as the 2024-25 season progresses. Thanks to how much more formidable the Canadiens prospects pool should get this season, that should be the case, and it wouldn’t hurt for them to gain some NHL experience as well.
For example, someone like Florian Xhekaj could surprise us early to the point he earns a spot with the big club later in the year. While the likelihood of a player like Xhekaj getting there probably won’t happen in 2024-25, the point is, there will always be someone in the prospects pool who made enough strides for an NHL trial, and that doesn’t always need to occur near the end of the season.
So, trading away some older players and bringing in more replaceable names to fill in as stopgaps would help prevent creating such a logjam. While it won’t translate to an incredible number of points next season, this ultimate checklist for the 2024 offseason will continue to strengthen the team’s foundation.
(Statistics provided by Hockey-Reference)