Kent Hughes made significant moves, taking advantage of weaknesses in other organizations, to secure major acquisitions

Indeed, eight of his acquisitions were first-round selections in an NHL draft. Among them, four were acquired through contract trades, and four were young players that their respective organizations let go.

Sean Monahan was acquired to free up salary in Calgary, Michael Matheson to address Jeff Petry's request, Denis Gurianov to part ways with Evgeny Dadonov, and Tanner Pearson to help the Canucks shed salary.

All these transactions have proven beneficial for Kent Hughes. Even though Gurianov is no longer with the team, he cost less than Dadonov. Kent Hughes took advantage of the limited cap space of these teams to acquire specific targeted players.

Kirby Dach, Alex Newhook, Justin Barron, and Nicolas Beaudin were acquired because their teams let them go, and it worked out well for the Canadiens. Regarding Justin Barron, it's the only transaction that may not be judged entirely positively, as Artturi Lehkonen is crucial for the Avalanche.

Regarding Kirby Dach, Renaud Lavoie had much to say about his relationship with the Blackhawks. According to him, Kent Hughes may have taken advantage of this strained relationship to acquire him at a low cost.

It's hard to say if these difficult relationships are the sole cause, but one thing is certain: if this trade were to happen again tomorrow morning, the Blackhawks would ask for more than what they got.

Until then, we sincerely hope that Dach can return to 100% next year and that his year away from competition won't be too detrimental to his development.