3 trades the Canadiens missed out on at the NHL trade deadline

The Montreal Canadiens have a clear rebuilding plan in place, so it made sense for them not to buy at the NHL trade deadline. However, as a young hockey team in rebuilding mode, they could have simultaneously bought and sold in trades with a few potential contenders and perhaps even a team that was far from contention. 

There were plenty of young NHL talents in the rumor mill whose time with their respective organizations hasn’t gone as planned. And since the Canadiens had plenty of seasoned veterans to trade away, they could have flipped those players in a deal that involved a youngster who may have fared better in Quebec than in their current systems. 

Some of the players whose names were swirling were Jake Allen (ultimately traded to New Jersey) and David Savard. Other veterans aged 30 or over who were either pending unrestricted free agents or with one more full season on their respective deals include Tanner Pearson and Joel Armia. 

Montreal Canadiens could have sold more at the NHL trade deadline

Montreal also traded Sean Monahan to the Winnipeg Jets the month prior, but next to making a pair of low-key AHL trades, including one on Monday, Allen was the only one who went, and that was for a conditional draft pick. But what if the Canadiens found ways to send Savard, Armia, and Pearson elsewhere?

There are quite a few players they could have gotten in return, and while these hypothetical trades wouldn’t have carried a ‘blockbuster’ label, they could have helped the Canadiens in the long run. No, none of the names you are about to see are anywhere near an NHL All-Star level, but they wouldn’t have cost much to flip to either a contender or even an organization looking to reset.