Post-Game Talk: Trade Deadline Day: March 7, 2025: Montreal stands pat

[OnTheRun]

That's a pretty brutal self own...

If I'm the owner of that team, I'm not keeping that guy employed long

Nah, not entirely anyway. This is pretty much the main reason why team don't want to get involved in hockey trades at the TDL. They don't want to get bogged down in a complicated trade and miss out on the rest of the activities going on.

 

[Grate n Colorful Oz]

Again, what they don't need is to USE picks and and hang on to prospects. What they DO NEED is to accumulate assets. Right now they are missing 2 Premium pieces to build a contender that isn't within the organization. A 2C and a top 4 RD. These players cost A LOT and they're not available every year unless they are on the wrong side of 30, and even then as we saw with Nelson the price remains steep.
In a normal year, armia is worth a 4th, this year he gets you min a 2nd.

If we were only missing 1 premium piece, I would probably agree we don't need more picks. However that is not the case. The more quality pieces you're missing, the more assets you need to accumulate in order to get them.

Thing is 1-we have two first this year and 2-next year we might jettison Matheson and Laine for quite a haul, if the former is replaced by Rainmaker and the latter is seen as a bad fit.

We'll have plenty more ammo

 

[dinodebino]

That is a f***ing bad excuse. Dunton should fire him. “I screwed up a trade so I didn’t have time to do my job”.

 

[Miller Time]

Did you post this with a straight face? We got paid to take Laine, if he was a serviceable player one of those teams would have added him considering in your mind he’s a free top 6 player

Perhaps you aren't familiar with that thing called a salary cap

Lekhonen developed further once he left. Smith has six 50+ pt seasons. Even Lundells rookie season is better than Newhook’s career high.

Remind me, How many 50+ pt seasons does Laine, who is 26 years old, have?

Not a serious opinion!

I'm seriously perplexed at how you can ignore context so readily in coming up with these takes

Edit: I realize now you posted those players as being worse than Laine specifically but I still don’t agree with that. Laine stands in one spot and shoots one timers. He cannot skate at an ECHL level even.

Knee. Injury.

 

[Sorinth]

I’m not mad at that. It’s dumb to not pick up depth. Dach isn’t coming back, which means Beck is their 2C??? The second line hardly plays. Beck doesn’t belong in the nhl right now. What happens if they make the playoffs? Beck stays up, Laval suffers a bit. Makes no sense.

I would have liked to get stopgap who could've allowed us to send Beck back to Laval, but let's not pretend Beck being 2C is only on paper. That line is pretty much the 4th line, Laine's been mostly getting 10-13 minutes, Newhook's at like 12-14, Beck is often not even getting 10 minutes most nights. And that's with Laine and Newhook getting PP time.

Laine - Beck - Newhook is our 4th line.

 

[HabsMD97]

An extra 2nd doesn't get Montreal a premium piece. There is nothing Montreal could have gotten for their rentals at this deadline that would have tipped the balance to getting 2 premium pieces, nor would it have seriously affected their ability to go from being in the mix to being a lottery contender.

Would adding a 2nd or more have been nice in the long run? Yes. Was it a mistake long term not to sell? Likely. But its not that big of mistake. The complaining doesn't match the reality that Montreal has extra picks and prospects to acquire those pieces.

I never said a 2nd alone is getting you a premium piece, it's about combining and adding pieces on top of another. Hage/Mailloux + 1st + 2 2nds looks a lot better than Hage/Mailloux + 1st... The latter gets you a a 33 yr old UFA (Nelson), the former can get you a much better player. 2 2nds is equivalent to a late 1st.

I'm not saying this is the end of the world, just pointing out this was an important opportunity missed.

 

[Leto]

That's a pretty brutal self own...

If I'm the owner of that team, I'm not keeping that guy employed long

The word is that owner is very active in the hockey ops decisions and that he's the one calling the shots.

 

[No More Subban]

Still suffering for the horrible decisions Bergevin made... Armia, Dvorak and Savard should not have been on the 2024-2025 team to begin with.

Why not let this team (as is) compete for the wildcard... Whether they make it or not, the team will gain invaluable experience (and MSL will see how the players respond to the pressure) in the next 20 gaines. The Rocket also keep the same roster and they can make a long run in the Calder Cup playoffs.

I think Hughes did the best with the situation he was given.

The fun starts after the season is over with significant money/contracts coming off the books and we can actively start building the roster with FA's and NHL trades, not picks and reclamation projects.

I don't mind Armia and Savard as long as the team keeps their TOI next season. They're (+Evans) the reason why we're 6th in PK this year. It would be nice if the team can stay top 5-10 in PK next season while Demidov also helps improve the offense.

 

[The Gr8 Dane]

I support Kent's decision to do f*** all.

You people are just like children who don't get to eat their candy before dinner.

Well with a tweet like that.....

I guess its ok

 

[Treb]

Oh snap

When does his season end?

Last regular season match for Timra is March 11th. They are currently 6th.

After that, it depends on how far they go in the playoffs.

Spots 7 to 11 have a 1st round best-of-3
Winners of those and the top6 go on to have best-of-7.

So most likely he will be there for the playoffs, possibly as early as late March.

 

[HabsMD97]

Thing is 1-we have two first this year and 2-next year we might jettison Matheson and Laine for quite a haul, if the former is replaced by Rainmaker and the latter is seen as a bad fit.

We'll have plenty more ammo

Hughes refused to sell Armia and Savard but you think he's going to trade better players in a more important year for picks and prospects?

 

[HabsCode]

Just logged in, missed TDL due to work. No wheeling and dealing today for mister Kent, kind of expected. We are in between being seller and buyer. I respect the decision.

 

[Pickles]

Trading away Necas for 12 games of Rantanen who played like a mediocre 2nd liner. Lmao.

Who needs Rantonen or Necas when you have Kotkaniemi?

 

[Runner77]

Idiots. That’s on Dundon working with a skeleton staff. Every other org has several management people who can take calls.

 

[Sasha Orlov]

That's a pretty brutal self own...

If I'm the owner of that team, I'm not keeping that guy employed long

Honestly man how do you even f*** up that bad holy

 

[austin316]

lets finish 16th , that'll help the rebuild. Then next year when Fatso, Armia, Dvorak and MM prove to be even more useless we can all talk about next years draft, yet again

Can’t finish bottom 5 every year. Getting experience of playing in meaningful games is more important to this team than drafting 3 or 4 spots higher.

 

[tazsub3]

Could not have happened to a better team

 

[ReHabs]

Hughes refused to sell Armia and Savard but you think he's going to trade better players in a more important year for picks and prospects?

Next year everything good will happen!

Not this year, but next year!

 

[tazsub3]

That is a f***ing bad excuse. Dunton should fire him. “I screwed up a trade so I didn’t have time to do my job”.

With an ego driven owner like he has , he is as good as gone

 

[dinodebino]

Next year everything good will happen!

Not this year, but next year!

That’s what he said last Summer in fact. You don’t believe him?

 

[McGees]

Idiots. That’s on Dundon working with a skeleton staff. Every other org has several management people who can take calls.

Dundon doesn't pay for 'call waiting' so they couldn't afford to talk to anyone else while Rantanen was being finalized.

 

[ReHabs]

That’s what he said last Summer in fact. You don’t believe him?

I believe him now! Next year is a big one! Everything good will happen in the future!

 

[TomKosto]

lets finish 16th , that'll help the rebuild. Then next year when Fatso, Armia, Dvorak and MM prove to be even more useless we can all talk about next years draft, yet again

Fans/media in Mtl can’t diggest a rebuild. There’s a reason why we are a mediocre team since 30 years. Just look at all the people wanting to give first rounders for aging vets, cause they are sick of seeing us not make the playoff.

Go back in time and look how long the Pens/Kings/Hawks/Bolts/Florida/Caps sucked before they were contenders. Thoses teams didn’t kept on upcoming ufas or traded picks for aging vets during their rebuild.

I mean Reinbacher/Demidov/Fowler are not even with the teams and we see people wanting to sell futures just to make a little push and get destroy in the first round. Always the same BS in Mtl.

 

[Miller Time]

Nah, not entirely anyway. This is pretty much the main reason why team don't want to get involved in hockey trades at the TDL. They don't want to get bogged down in a complicated trade and miss out on the rest of the activities going on.

It may well be on the owner as well given the rumors of his meddling & bare bones approach...

But for a team that views itself as a contender? Zero excuse to fumble the deadline because they got too busy with 1 particular move.

 

[dinodebino]

Not expecting them to make the playoffs as their schedule is not easy.

But I do expect them to stay in the battle for a spot for at least the next two weeks.

I do not care where they finish for a draft choice because I maintain they won’t draft in the first round this summer; they will trade both picks. Tis the summer to rumble.