Montreal Canadiens: Three Players Most Likely To Be Traded After Sean Monahan Deal

Joel Armia

While there are some complication in trying to deal Joel Armia, there are reasons to believe a contender would want to bring him in this season.

The obvious road block is his contract. His offensive limitations ensure teams will not want to take on his $3.4 million cap hit for the remainder of this season plus the 2024-25 season as well. He has eight goals and just one assist in 33 games this season but offense is not his calling card anyway.

Armia would be an attractive addition to a Stanley Cup hopeful because of his elite defensive ability and penalty killing prowess. He would make a great shutdown winger in the bottom six that is first over the boards when a team takes a penalty. He just still isn't worth his cap hit.

However, the Canadiens did not retain any salary on the Monahan deal with is key. They have already kept some money from Joel Edmundson's contract as well as Jeff Petry's and can only retain salary on one more player for the duration of this season.

Holding onto about $1 million or perhaps $1.5 on Armia on making him a $1.9 million player would make it a lot easier to move the veteran winger. It still wouldn't lead to a huge return, maybe a fourth round pick, but would free up a bit more cap space to have a busier offseason and allow a player like Jesse Ylonen to play a bigger role for the rest of the season.

It is far from a guarantee, but an Armia deal is far from impossible as well. A good team with a little bit of cap space and a lousy penalty kill, looking at the Toronto Maple Leafs, Winnipeg Jets and New York Islanders, would be wise to give up a small return to have Armia fill a depth, but important role in a Stanley Cup playoff chase.