The Montreal Canadiens might not have found the right fit for a needle-moving trade yet, but it certainly doesn't mean that they won't this offseason, according to Kent Hughes.
The Montreal Canadiens fans who hoped and expected that general manager Kent Hughes would hit another home run on the trade market on Friday night were disappointed, but they shouldn’t throw in the towel. The GM spoke candidly with the media at the end of the first round, and he made it clear that high first-round picks were in demand ahead of the draft.
Hughes added that as a buyer, he’s not as in control as he was as a seller, and the Canadiens are now squarely in a buying role. Asked if he believed that the trade market could still be busy after the draft and even after free agency, he explained:
Absolutely yes. Because there are years when more teams are in a rebuilding process, and the value is in draft picks, in other years, the free-agent market isn’t as deep as it was in other years. I believe there are a lot of teams who are ready to listen on their player, but they are not convinced they have to trade them. If we have the right price, they’ll do it.
The GM doesn’t believe that using his first-round pick changed anything about his position as a buyer; a late-round pick doesn’t hold much value, especially when compared to the embarrassment of riches the Canadiens have in the prospect department.
As always, the Habs are not just enquiring about players that are rumoured to be on the market. They are now at a point where they need to target specific players to meet their needs. They are no longer just looking to add talent:
We have specific needs; there are so many more things we could have done two or three years ago. At this stage, we’re looking for players who will fill a specific need. Ideally, it’s always a younger player.
On Friday, there was a lot of noise about the Columbus Blue Jackets and the potential availability of their players. Frank Seravalli reported that the Habs had made a massive offer for Kirill Marchenko, which Don Waddell declined.
However, Pierre Lebrun reported that Zach Werenski indicated that he was unlikely to re-sign with the Jackets when his deal runs out at the end of the 2027-2028 season. Shortly after that report, Kevin Weekes mentioned that Marchenko had also made it clear he was unlikely to sign a new deal with Columbus. The 25-year-old is only under contract until the end of next season; he'll be eligible to sign a contract extension on July 1. He’s essentially in the same position that Noah Dobson was last season.
Now that the Russian winger has indicated he’s unlikely to sign a new deal with the Ohio outfit, Waddell may just be more receptive to the Canadiens’ offer. The question now becomes, though, what could have been included in that massive offer? It stands to reason that it would have included a highly rated prospect and even roster players. Perhaps an Alexander Zharovsky or even someone like Jacob Fowler? You have to give something to get something, and a player like Marchenko won’t come for cheap. The rights to Kirby Dach certainly won’t cut it.
He’s 6-foot-3 and weighs in at 201 pounds and has put up 74 points in 2024-25 and 67points last season. His current contract has a $3.85 million cap hit, but he will likely seek a significant raise. The contract the New York Rangers signed with Pavel Dorofeyev on Friday night (seven years at 11 million per) may very well be used as a comparable. The former Vegas Golden Knights winger put up 52 points and 64 points in the last two seasons.
Of course, if that’s the kind of deal Marchenko is after, it may sound a bit expensive for Montreal, especially since Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield and Juraj Slafkovsky all make less than eight million while defenseman Noah Dobson earns $9 million per season and Lane Hutson $8.85 million. However, it’s important to remember that the salary cap will continue to climb in the coming years, and the salary structure that Hughes and Jeff Gorton have spent years building won’t stand the test of time as the market evolves. It just can’t. However, Hughes would be wise to sign Ivan Demidov to a contract extension before trading for a player like Marchenko, who will likely carry a high cap hit.
Montreal may sound like an attractive destination for the big Russian, though. The Habs have just made a run to the Eastern Conference Final, but it was obvious that they were lacking size in the postseason, something Marchenko can definitely bring. Plus, Montreal has picked a Russian player with its first pick in the draft for the last three seasons. The idea of skating alongside Ivan Demidov may just be enticing enough to make him think twice before turning down a sign-and-trade deal that would send him to Montreal.
At this stage, this is all pure speculation on my part, but Marchenko certainly fits the bill of a real top-six winger that can drive a line and help unlock Demidov’s full potential. What is not speculation, however, is the fact that Hughes is confident he’ll be able to improve his team this offseason. Fans will just have to be patient.
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