The Calgary Flames have traded Sean Monahan and a 2025 first-round pick to the Montreal Canadiens in a move to clear cap space.

The Calgary Flames have had quite a busy day. 

In a corresponding move to clear the necessary cap room to sign Nazem Kadri, the Flames parted ways with longtime leader Sean Monahan, trading the forward to the Montreal Canadiens along with a first-round pick in the 2025 draft in exchange for future considerations. 

Monahan has one year left on his current contract at $6.375 million, with $6 million in actual salary owed to him that the Canadiens are now on the hook for. 

Needless to say, it's been a tough stretch for Monahan over the past few years. 

The former first-round pick's injury history is incredibly extensive, with Monahan having undergone surgery either during or following every season but one since 2016-17, with his only healthy offseason coming in 2019-20. 

In the summer of 2017, Monahan opted to go under the knife for wrist surgery that kept him out of the World Championship later that offseason. His 2017-18 season was ended prematurely so that he could undergo procedures to fix a multitude of ailments such as two herniated disks, an injured groin, and the same wrist that was operated on the year prior. In 2018-19, Monahan reportedly played through a cracked thumb, which then required surgery to be fixed after the Flames were ousted in the first round of the playoffs by the Colorado Avalanche. Fast forward to 2021, and Monahan was once again shut down midseason to undergo surgery on his left hip, while his 2021-22 campaign was ended early due to his right hip, as well. 

These ailments naturally caused Monahan's production to fall off a cliff as his health declined, with the usually talented centre hitting rock bottom last season by scoring just eight goals and 15 assists for 23 points in 65 games while logging a career-worst 14:04 in nightly ice time. 

At this point, it's unclear as to whether Monahan will be ready for the start of the 2022-23 season. If he isn't, the Canadiens can simply place his contract on Long Term Injured Reserve and allow themselves to spend above the salary cap limit until he's able to return.