Should trade expectations be high this summer in Montreal?
Jim Biringer of NHLRumors.com, Full Press Hockey, and RG Media joined TSN Radio in Montreal and was asked whether the Montreal Canadiens will make a move this offseason.
NHLRumors.com Transcriptions
Host: “Jim, do you expect- like, what are we expecting here to finish off the summer before we get to camp? I look here. We got a show every single day between 12 and 1. It’s one hour dedicated to the Montreal Canadiens. Habs lunch, and a lot of the text messages coming in, a lot of the tweets coming in, a little bit of. I’m not going to say there’s a great level of frustration, but I think for most, Pete, I think it’s fair to say a lot of the people that call in and text in were expecting something.
But what do you say to them Jim? What do you say to Habs fans that are, is there still a move to be made? We’re gonna wait till some of these offer sheets settle in, and perhaps some teams will look at their roster, and you believe that there are still moves to be made. I’ll be selfish because we’re on TSN 690, and I want it to be a Habs move. But even other teams in this league, do you expect moves to be made between now and early September?”
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Jim Biringer: “Yeah, I think there’ll be some moves made. Look, with respect to the Montreal Canadiens, we’ve seen this before. Kent Hughes takes his time. He’s scouring the market. Patience, right? Jeff Gorton has talked about this too. Being patient, being calculated. That’s what they did. I mean, look, we expected, we had the big move. Everybody expected. Maybe we were trained like wrestling fans to expect something big, a big surprise to happen at the Draft or July 1.
But the years that they locked up their core guys, it was later in the offseason that they did something. A couple of years ago, it was a Patrik Laine move. Take a risk there. I do believe that they’re going to do something. They just have to figure out what the best player is for them and the best salary to bring in. They’re calling, but again, it takes two to tango, as Kent Hughes has said.
And with other teams around the league, I think we have to wait to see what the market is for guys like Adam Fantilli and Connor Bedard in Chicago, and what happens with Quinn Hughes in Minnesota. Obviously, Macklin Celebrini is due for an extension in San Jose. That’s something that they’re going to be watching.
But if you can go to a team that’s up against the cap, Dallas, say, Colorado, a team like that, maybe you can get a player that’s necessary, that can fit into your roster and fill a need, but again, it’s always calculated.
They’re just not going to make a move just to make a move because the rest of the division did something. Montreal’s in good shape. You get another year of your young players. Maybe Oliver Kapanen takes another step. Obviously, the Kirby Dach arbitration hearing is coming up. Do they get there? Is that a piece that they move off of?
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So I expect something from the Montreal Canadiens. When it is, it’s probably when we least expect it. That’s what I believe.”
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