The seven worst trade proposals concerning Habs during the off season
With less than 15 days until the first round of the National Hockey League draft, rumors about trades and the Montreal Canadiens are rampant.
Some trade proposals are worth considering, while others must have made General Manager Kent Hughes raise an eyebrow. For your benefit, we have compiled a list of the worst proposals observed during the Canadiens' offseason.
Considering that there is no hockey and Canadiens activities are dwindling and rather rare, journalists and analysts are trying to stimulate discussions around hypothetical trades.
As we too are looking for topics to keep our readers engaged, we offer you a summarized commentary on a masterpiece published by the DLC site. Although the text seems to be anonymous, it has significantly animated internet users. Comments are flooding in...
Warning to sensitive souls... Our commented summary might scratch the ego of some individuals.
The Seven Worst Trade Offers Involving the Canadiens, Submitted by Notable Names like Mathias Brunet, Gilbert Delorme, and Others
It's titled "The 7 Worst Trade Proposals Heard About the Canadiens This Summer and June 21st Hasn't Even Arrived Yet."
Here are the trade proposals in question:
1- Jean-Francois Baril on QUB Radio on June 5th during Mario Dumont's show.
Martin Necas for the Montreal Canadiens' first-round pick (5th overall in 2024)
We remind you that Martin Necas scored 53 points on a second line in 2023-2024. He is excellent and certainly a reliable top-6 forward for the Canadiens if a trade materializes, but remember that a fifth overall pick can yield players like Cutter Gauthier, Jake Sanderson, Kent Johnson, Elias Pettersson, Phil Kessel, Carey Price, and many other stars. It is also true that there is no guarantee that the drafted player will be a star in the NHL, as evidenced by names like Olli Juolevi, Michael Dal Colle, Alex Turcotte, Barrett Hayton, and many others...
2- Gilbert Delorme on BPM Sports on May 28th during the morning show.
Brady Tkachuk for David Reinbacher and the Canadiens' two first-round picks (5th overall in 2024 and 26th overall in 2024)
Drafted fourth overall in his draft year, Brady Tkachuk would cost two top-5 picks and another first-round pick. It's a hefty price, but you can't blame Gilbert Delorme; players of Brady Tkachuk's caliber and style are unique. Brady Tkachuk has shown he can score 35 goals and 70 points in a season with a team that is still finding itself. This isn't the worst trade of the lot when you consider the intangibles...
3- Mathias Brunet on BPM Sports during the evening show with Martin Lemay.
Mike Matheson for the New Jersey Devils' first-round pick (10th overall in 2024)
At 30 years old, Mike Matheson just had the best season of his career. He broke into the top 10 scoring defensemen with 62 points and plays significant minutes in Montreal. He is the closest thing to a number-one defenseman in Montreal, though we prefer to talk about a top-2 defenseman on a team aiming for high honors. Why trade the only veteran identified as a top-2 when the Canadiens' window is in 2 or 3 years? Trade one of the best defensemen in the NHL for a first-round pick that will take 3 or 4 years to develop? Why, Mathias?
4- Stéphane Gonzalez and Max Van Houtte on the Le Combo podcast, June 7th.
Kaiden Guhle for Trevor Zegras
Kaiden Guhle established himself as a top-4 defenseman on a contending team this season, at just 22 years old. Physical, mobile, good first pass, and defensively stable; it could be a big loss for the Canadiens. Meanwhile, Trevor Zegras seems to have numerous issues in Anaheim. He seems to need a change of scenery. Could he become a star again like in 2021-2022 and 2022-2023? No one can say for sure, but it's not such a crazy idea...
5- David Ettedgui on the Laraque/Gonzalez show on BPM Sports.
Jayden Struble and a 5th-round pick for Alexander Holtz
Basically, proposing a defenseman not really in the organization's plans and a 5th-round pick, meaning a player who is 99% unlikely to ever play for the Canadiens, for a player drafted in the top 10 in 2020. At 22 years old, he scored 16 goals and seems to be constantly progressing. I need an explanation for this one... I'm not sure I understand the trade. Does the Devils' GM owe Kent Hughes a favor? It seems so...
6- Frank Well - The Hockey Podcast on YouTube, May 30, 2024.
Arthur Kaliyev for Joël Armia
The 22-year-old American scored 15 points in 51 games with the Los Angeles Kings. He seems to have lost his spot in the team's top-9. He's not the same player who scored 14 goals in 80 games in 2021-2022, then 13 goals in 56 games last season. Expectations were for him to exceed the 20-goal mark, but instead, he scored a meager 7 goals in 51 games. His natural scoring talent was praised... Even though Joël Armia has often been inconsistent in recent years and his $3.4 million salary frustrates many fans/experts, his end of the season was positive and filled with hope for the last year of his contract. We keep Joël, and the Kings must extend Kaliyev's contract, as he is a restricted free agent this summer.
7- TSN 690:
Cole Caufield for Mitch Marner and Toronto's first-round pick (23rd overall)
He also mentions, as an honorable mention, the recent proposal by Mathias Brunet (Cole Caufield for the 6th overall pick in 2024) and an offer submitted by Norman Flynn (the Canadiens' first-round pick - 5th overall - for Mason McTavish).
Cole Caufield had a two-part season. The first half was horrible, then the second half encouraging for 2024-2025. Juraj Slafkovsky and Nick Suzuki provided fuel for the little number 22. Trading Cole Caufield for Mitch Marner is a real bombshell... It's not the Canadiens who should give their 26th pick... It's the Maple Leafs who should give the 23rd pick overall plus Mitch Marner for Cole Caufield. An elite playmaker in the NHL, dominant on the power play, formidable on the penalty kill; Mitch Marner has scored over 80 points in four seasons since the beginning of his career. Meanwhile, Cole Caufield reached his career-high with... 65 points in 2023-2024. The only season where Mitch Marner did worse than that was his rookie season, where he scored 61 points. Not far off! To acquire Mitch Marner, even with his heavy annual salary, it would cost much more than Cole Caufield.
Trading the sixth overall pick from Utah's team for Cole Caufield would be like parting with Mike Matheson. Why delay the rebuild and push the window back three or four years? It wouldn't make sense when the Canadiens' core players are good and could help this team make a good run in the playoffs in 2 or 3 years.
Sacrificing the fifth overall pick for Mason McTavish is typical Norman Flynn! Oh wait! He made that proposal... Why would the Ducks sacrifice one of their two best forwards? It wouldn't make any sense! The Ducks have several excellent young defensemen with Pavel Mintyukov, Olen Zellweger, Tristan Luneau, Noah Warren, Rodwin Dionicio, Tyson Hinds, and others... There's no doubt we would all love to acquire McTavish, but let's not dream too much...
It's a humorous text that has amused fans. There are «well-done» type comments under each of the trade proposals mentioned above.
Credit and full text:
As rumors can make us smile and bring happiness to people's lives! We thank the Truman Show for its masterpiece...
| POLL | ||
Which trade proposal is the worst, according to you? | ||
| Marner + 23th overall pick 2024 vs Caufield | 253 | 55.8 % |
| Necas vs 5th overall pick 2024 | 92 | 20.3 % |
| Matheson vs 10th overall pick 2024 | 43 | 9.5 % |
| Struble + 5th round pick 2024 vs Holtz | 65 | 14.3 % |
| List of polls | ||
