With Xhekaj in the doghouse and Struble struggling, the Canadiens need help on D

The Montreal Canadiens have been a team floating around in trade rumours all season, whether it has been about adding another centre or a depth forward, but the priority should be adding another defenceman over anything else. Martin St. Louis appears not to be the biggest fan of Arber Xhekaj and continues to ride with Jayden Struble, who has been struggling. Xhekaj was playing well enough to stay in the lineup, but there seems to be a lack of trust between him and St. Louis. If St. Louis truly does not want Xhekaj in the lineup, the best course of action should be to look to add another defenceman before the trade deadline.

Filip Hronek

With the Vancouver Canucks taking calls on just about every player on their roster, the Canadiens should do their due diligence on whether they would be open to trading Filip Hronek. He has turned himself into one of the more reliable defencemen in the league since the trade that sent him from the Detroit Red Wings to the Canucks. He formed a partnership with Quinn Hughes, which was viewed as one of the premier duos in the league. The Canadiens have their very own defenceman who possesses similar qualities and abilities to Hughes in Lane Hutson.

He would slot in on the right side of Hutson, where Struble has been playing in the last couple of games and would be a huge upgrade. However, while the fit would be perfect, Hronek's salary could be a problem for the Canadiens. He has six years remaining on the deal he signed in 2024, with a cap hit of $7,250,000 a season until 2032. The Canadiens will have to pay Ivan Demidov, Oliver Kapanen, and Jacob Fowler over the next couple of seasons, making the term and dollar amount left on Hronek’s contract an issue. If it were just based upon fit, the Czech defenceman would be perfect for Montreal.

Justin Faulk

The St. Louis Blues are in a similar situation to the Canucks and could be ready to start trading away their veteran players as they move forward with their young core. Other than Robert Thomas and Jordan Kyrou, the name that likely will be a hot topic in trade discussions will be Justin Faulk. Faulk has one more year remaining on his contract beyond this season, and with the Blues sitting in 31st place in the NHL standings, it will be surprising if he is still on their roster after the March 6th trade deadline. Faulk is having a career revival for the struggling Blues, with 11 goals in 50 games this season after recording just six combined in the last two years.

Faulk, like Hronek, is a well-rounded defenceman who is just as dependable in the offensive zone as he is in his own zone. While the term remaining on his contract makes sense for the Canadiens, what the Blues will want in return to acquire Faulk might be more than they are willing to offer. According to Sportsnet insider Elliotte Friedman, the Blues are looking for a similar package to what the Calgary Flames got for Rasmus Andersson. If the Canadiens could bring down the asking price for Faulk, who is four years older than Andersson, he would be an excellent addition for a team with hopes of making a deep playoff run.