Confirmed with Link: Artturi Lehkonen (50% Retained) Traded to Colorado for a 2024 2nd Round Pick & Justin Barron

[Mudz]

Before the TDL we tought a 2nd would be amazing for Leks.

We got a 2nd.... AND Barron!

He's a RFA. We were not in a position to pay him.

Perfect trade.

 

[Doc McKenna]

Can you guys believe his forechecking? He was our forechecking DEMON
He was snakebit for what seemed like SEASONS at a time but generally our teams as a whole werent very good, but God he always gives it his all, good enough speed, built like a horse
And scored the goal of my life. I'll love that lil bastard forEVER
Take care of him
Miss ya Lehks, go WIN that thing

Snakebit should have been his name as a hab. Always liked him, but was also surprised every time I looked at his age. If he had been 24 this year instead of 26(i think) he may have been worth keeping just because of his very solid work ethic.(to pass on to the rookies) Lehky is finally getting on the right side of the bounces. Happy for him and his next payday.

Now I can just hope that the positives I have seen from our managers and their rebuilding skills are as good as I sense. They saw we needed D help, and not just an 18 YO question mark, or some grizzled vet that was well past his prime. Looks on the face of i that this will give some good seasoning and have a very solid middle pairing Dman in a couple years. Not a guy we happen to put there like chairot, but someone like hammer when he played for the habs. Decent numbers and can play all aspects of the game.

Like everyone one else said, hopefully a WIN/WIN.

For the playofss, not that I have seen many, I am cheering on the Avs. Oilers would be OK too. Hate TB and rags are just behind, or maybe just ahead of the flyers in my book of hate. Of course bruins will always be #1

 

[NORiculous]

And deservely so, he's nothing like Bergeron.

But he could be a potential top 6 winger with great work ethic.

It's a win-win for both teams.

I know it’s hard to read sometimes. I said Bergeron type of player not Bergeron.

Lehkonen won't score 30, but he'll see a nice bump in his production playing on a powerhouse like the Avs.

I absolutely knew Lehks would step up in the playoffs – he always has. Both teams got what they needed.

I agree that both teams got what they needed.

It doesn’t matter though. His prime would be wasted here. It’s not that he isn’t a useful player, it’s about direction.

Barron’s prime is five years from now. It makes way more sense to trade for him than keep Leky here and waste him.

I agree but still thought he would have been a good vet to show the way.

Why pay another 3rd liner ~4M until he's 30s when the team is literally the worst in the NHL? He was never going to fit in with the team's window. Habs already have Anderson/Gallagher/Armia taking up 15.5M for next 3+ years. You really believe having Lehkonen added to them will be good for this roster? Barron might bust but at least he gives you a shot at having a top 4 RD in maybe 2-3 years when Wright/Caufield are fully adjusted.

I just thought that Lehkonen would have been a great model for the kids. I do like what the Habs got though.

 

[NORiculous]

A lot of Habs fans are guilty of targeting guys like Lehkonen and ignoring talent needs to play with talent. Same treatment on Anderson right now. Imagine how Anderson would look playing with the Avs or other teams with deeper talent (especially up the middle)?

I agree that the #1 need is talent.

I mean, I saw a lot of people on here talking about him "having another notch" for YEARS, holding onto the 18 goals he scored as a 21 years old.

He always comes out with a shot or two out of nowhere where you think "If he did that consistently... how good could he be?", but then the next game he muffin-shots it into the goalie's chest.

Keeping in mind that he was probably following the lead of other muffin shot guys like Gallagher, Plekanec, Danault and also was coached by muffin-shot and dump-and-chase coaches.

But surely, playing in the Avs top 6 probably makes his life MUCH easier than in Montreal. If he was missing one or two adjustments to his shot to be consistently dangerous, I bet guys like MacKinnon, Landeskog, Rantanen are much better examples to follow than Gallagher or anyone else on the Habs (no offense to Gallagher, but his shot is weak).

I'm still very happy with the trade. With Weber LTIR and Petry aging, I'm glad to see a NHL or near-NHL ready young D stepping in.

Great points.

 

[MTL-rules]

I know it’s hard to read sometimes. I said Bergeron type of player not Bergeron.


I agree that both teams got what they needed.


I agree but still thought he would have been a good vet to show the way.


I just thought that Lehkonen would have been a great model for the kids. I do like what the Habs got though.

My reading skills are fine. He's not a Bergeron type player either. He's not a center and far from a PPG player. He might end up being a solid 2-way energic top 6 winger... That's not a Bergeron type player.

 

[Doc5]

Happy for lehkonen and the Avs, but I still do that trade in hindsight. We never sell high on players, we attempted to do that and we got some good pieces. So there shouldn’t be any regrets here - It’s like Pacioretty said, in Montreal, everyone has a shelf life. If we kept Lehkonen he would have played himself into a contract that would have made us appreciate him less.

 

[TomKosto]

I like Lekhonen, but we have no Mackinnon in this team. He's a complimentary player.... Wanted a first for him though, not really high on Barron.

 

[NORiculous]

My reading skills are fine. He's not a Bergeron type player either. He's not a center and far from a PPG player. He might end up being a solid 2-way energic top 6 winger... That's not a Bergeron type player.

Bergeron type of player is exactly what you said in your previous post: a top 6 player with great work ethics.

We already know that Lehkonen was solid in the d zone, so saying he is top 6 is saying he can produce like a top 6, which in other words is saying he is a Bergeron type of player, solid a both ends.

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

I know it’s hard to read sometimes. I said Bergeron type of player not Bergeron.


I agree that both teams got what they needed.


I agree but still thought he would have been a good vet to show the way.


I just thought that Lehkonen would have been a great model for the kids. I do like what the Habs got though.

We have other vets to show the way. No point in wasting his prime here. Besides, he’d have needed a new contract… we’re rebuilding anyway, trading him was the right move and we got a really good prospect.

 

[MTL-rules]

Bergeron type of player is exactly what you said in your previous post: a top 6 player with great work ethics.

We already know that Lehkonen was solid in the d zone, so saying he is top 6 is saying he can produce like a top 6, which in other words is saying he is a Bergeron type of player, solid a both ends.

We don't agree on the definition, a center has a lot more responsabilities than a winger. Bergeron is probably going to be a hall of famer.

Bergeron like player is to me an elite two-way center (Suzuki is a Bergeron like player), not a energy 2-way top 6 winger.

 

[Bourne Endeavor]

I like Lekhonen, but we have no Mackinnon in this team. He's a complimentary player.... Wanted a first for him though, not really high on Barron.

With where Colorado's drafting, we'd be lucky to get a player with Barron's potential. 28th-32nd is basically a glorified second.

 

[26Mats]

I like Lekhonen, but we have no Mackinnon in this team. He's a complimentary player.... Wanted a first for him though, not really high on Barron.

Why aren't you high on Barron?

Great skater. Lots of potential. We await to see how well he processes the game. It takes a while for dmen to really get the nuances of the NHL game.

 

[TomKosto]

Why aren't you high on Barron?

Great skater. Lots of potential. We await to see how well he processes the game. It takes a while for dmen to really get the nuances of the NHL game.

Nice tools, no high IQ IMO.

 

[admiralcadillac]

Really happy to see Lehkonen thrive in Colorado. Great Hab.

 

[tooji]

I wouldn’t have traded him. Might end up being a mistake from KH imo. Lehkonens are so hard to find imo. I wish we kept him. I like Barron, but I’m not super crazy about him.

3rd line wingers are harder to find than top 4 RHD?

 

[KevSkillz4]

Win-Win trade. Great work by both teams on that deal.

 

[ArtPeur]

3rd line wingers are harder to find than top 4 RHD?

Barron isn't a top4 RHD yet. I haven't watched much of the Rocket but Ylonen might pick up Lehkonen's spot next season. We don't have another winger like him right now in the lineup. That said, he's more than a 3rd line winger. He fits well on the 2nd line in Denver. To give you an idea, he played more time on PP in Colorado than he did in Montreal during the season.

He's a top6 winger imo but we mostly used him on a checking/defensive line.

 

[Rapala]

We aren’t in the playoffs. Lehkonen wouldn’t play anyway.

We’ve seen enough of Lehky. He is a good player but we have no cap to sign him and he was a bit redundant.

Moreover, we had only Mailloux for good rd prospect. Now we have Barron and I think he will make the team out of camp .

Indeed win-win deal

Lehk was a lot of things but redundant wasn’t one of them.

 

[TT1]

ugh

 

[Andrei79]

Bergeron type of player is exactly what you said in your previous post: a top 6 player with great work ethics.

We already know that Lehkonen was solid in the d zone, so saying he is top 6 is saying he can produce like a top 6, which in other words is saying he is a Bergeron type of player, solid a both ends.

Saying Bergeron is a top 6 player is like saying Ovechking is a top 6 player. Bergeron's an elite top line center who's going to the hall of fame. Lehkonen is a poor man's Lehtinen if you're going to go with these kind of comps.

 

[Habs13]

Really glad to see him do well in Colorado - hope its him that scores the series winning goal and puts his team into the cup final two years in a row.

 

[Natey]

God he's so f***ing good.

 

[BehindTheTimes]

3rd line wingers are harder to find than top 4 RHD?

Remind me when Barron is a top 4 d

 

[LaP]

I see our fan base did not change. I'm glad it looks like we now have a management who will not try to please to our fan base instead of trying to win. Anyone who would have kept Lehkonen is out for launch imo.

 

[admiralcadillac]

Saying Bergeron is a top 6 player is like saying Ovechking is a top 6 player. Bergeron's an elite top line center who's going to the hall of fame. Lehkonen is a poor man's Lehtinen if you're going to go with these kind of comps.

He doesn’t play like Lehtinen at all