TVA Sports Journalist Pushes Back on Kent Hughes Amid Carey Price Trade Talks
Nicolas Cloutier, rising TVA Sports journalist and Sick Podcast contributor, questions Kent Hughes' latest comments on Carey Price.
Let's summarize the situation of the past few days.
While all eyes have been on Carey Price and his contract since Monday, waiting for a trade, Kent Hughes told journalist Eric Engels yesterday that he doesn't need to trade Carey Price, and that he is comfortable starting the season using the long-term injured reserve (LTIR) to manage the Canadiens' salary cap issues.
It's good to see Kent Hughes keeping a cool head, but this could very well be smoke and mirrors..
Nicolas Cloutier of TVA Sports explains why Kent Hughes has a strong incentive to trade Carey Price before the season starts
On his Twitter account, the friendly journalist broke down the reasons why, in his opinion, Kent Hughes' comments in his interview with Eric Engels are just a negotiation tactic.
"Kent Hughes told colleague Eric Engels that he isn't obligated to trade Price. Obligated, maybe not.. but he really ought to do it, since the cap relief will be far from optimal with the LTIR. The negotiation game is in full swing and, obviously, the last thing a GM wants to show is that he absolutely needs to make a trade."
- Nicolas Cloutier
- Nicolas Cloutier
So, if we summarize Cloutier's points, here's what to take away:
1- It is technically possible to start the season with Carey Price's contract on the long-term injured reserve list.
2- If that happens, it would significantly handicap the Canadiens' GM in terms of salary cap flexibility to find a legitimate second-line center.
3- If Kent Hughes said he's comfortable starting the season without trading Price, it's because he doesn't want to appear weak to other GMs who could use that to extract a high draft pick from him.
That makes a lot of sense! We also encourage you to follow Nicolas Cloutier on X. His analyses are always insightful.
| POLL | ||
SEPTEMBRE 3 | 495 ANSWERS TVA Sports Journalist Pushes Back on Kent Hughes Amid Carey Price Trade Talks Do you think Kent Hughes is bluffing when he says he doesn't need to trade Carey Price? | ||
| Yes | 301 | 60.8 % |
| No | 194 | 39.2 % |
| List of polls | ||
TRENDING NOW
