Which young dman (or 2) is traded first?

[DramaticGloveSave]

Hutson-Reinbacher
Guhle-Mailloux
Xhekaj/Harris/Kovasevic.

I’m happy keeping those 7. Barron and Matheson, currently our top pair, seem like the guys who get us value back while not hurting us long term.

ETA

Forgot Engstrom lol holy heck do we have a lot of defenders

 

[HuGo Burner Acc]

not saying trade him right now… we don’t need to make any move right now.

The odd man out will like be Struble or Harris, maybe Struble make Harris expandable first but I don’t see moving Ghule, Xhekaj and Hutson moving and even Engstrom is look very good. If they can’t make it At RD and have trade value someone will be traded.

Matheson
Ghule
Xhekaj
Harris
Strubble
Hutson
Engstrom

You forgot Reinbacher lol. Don't think they'll trade him either . But yeah it's probably a good idea to keep Matheson until at least Engstrom is ready to play. I'd also like to point out that although Struble is an off man out for the top 6, he might be able to fit into a 7D role whereas players like Harris and Barron are better off being traded because they're more than a spare D on a team

 

[TT1]

definitely Barron, you would have to be out of your mind to move Harris this early

 

[Sam de Mtl]

It's a hard question because the time isn't now and it's much better to see who develops before making long term decisions like this, but in the idea that these are either our best pieces/pieces we should build around/pieces that intrigue me and wouldn't bring back much in a trade:

Huston Reinbacher
Guhle Mailloux
Xhekaj
Engstrom
Struble

I see Harris and Barron as two pieces who may be on the outside looking in and should Gerber some attention around the league.

If Engstrom can play RD, this defense is pretty set.

 

[tooji]

I think realistically the player they will trade will depend on the market. Harris might be the one we want to get rid of but if packaging Xhejak or Engstrom gets us a top 6 forward in return it may make more sense.

 

[StCaufield]

So, you wouldn't have traded so much for Newhook, but somehow you would have extorted another GM to give you a Toffoli-type package for Harris?

You can’t compare a young D man and a 30 year old forward when it comes to the market but yes I would expect that

 

[JuJu Mobb]

Harris is the odd man out.

Barron has more upside, imo.

 

[loudi94]

Norlinder not mentioned after being highly thought of should serve as a warning that not all of these D will pan out. If we get six NHlers from our list, we should consider ourselves lucky. Having too many would be a lot to ask.

 

[Estimated_Prophet]

Can we wait and see if those guy are gonna pan before trading them ?

We have too many and we should try to move the one's who are least likely to be long term solutions in Montreal. Some may decrease in value over time so moving one or two quickly is not a bad idea. Waiting to see if a player's development stalls is a poor way of maximizing your return. Ideally they all develop well and we keep some and trade the rest for assets that better suit our needs.

 

[Beer and Chips]

Baron is safe until Mallioux is cleared. Arber has to improve his defense even though his physicality is highly valued to justify supplanting Harris and Kovacevic who aren't flashy but effective.

 

[JeffreyLFC]

Harris and Guhle.

 

[Deebs]

definitely Barron, you would have to be out of your mind to move Harris this early

Isn't Barron younger than Harris?

 

[Wateredgarden]

I feel the three keepers are Hutson, Ghule and Reinbacher.

 

[TT1]

Isn't Barron younger than Harris?

yes but i have big worries about Barron's hockey IQ, whereas that's Harris' strength, i have more confidence in Harris' development

 

[rahad]

I can see Mailloux getting traded if Hutson is the real deal and Barron continues to develop the defensive side of his game.

You don't need 6 offensive d-men on the backend. You need a good balance, and I think Huston, Barron, Guhle will provide what the team needs in terms of puck movement, shots, and transition from the backend. Harris, Reinbacher, Arber complement the defensive aspects very well.

Mailloux might have the most value of the d prospects the team would be willing to trade (I don't think Guhle, Reinbacher, Hutson are getting traded for anything short of an overpayment). If his offensive game is what people say it is, he has more value than Barron and Harris and can help fill a hole up front.

Mailloux bring a physical game that we desperately need. His potential is also bigger than Barron. I would probably trade Harris and Barron before Mailloux.

 

[BenchBrawl]

If I had to trade two, it would be Barron and Harris.

 

[YukonCornelius 5thOA]

definitely Barron, you would have to be out of your mind to move Harris this early

He’s not appreciated.

 

[Mister Hab]

MUST KEEP (Jayden "Jay" Struble):
I'd bet most of you will miss him during the playoffs when it gets tougher/dirtier/grittier/faster. I'd bet he becomes a playoff-warrior in playoffs. You need more d-men like that...not less.

Near future D-core:
Reinbacher, Guhle, Barron, Mailloux, Hutson, Xhekaj, Struble, Engstrom. (and Harris..maybe Kovacevic? maybe Matheson will want to stay another extra 2-3 seasons?).



Give to get scenario: 1 or 2 out of Mailloux, Barron, or Harris can get us a #2 center big/tall two-way center we desperately need for playoffs...'cause I'm not sure what management is doing with Dach? I wish Dach could be our no.2 center, but they keep putting him on/off/on/off the wing...center...wing...center ; we need Dach as our no.2 center, imo).

 

[Saku K]

Reinbacher
Guhle
Hutson
Mailloux
Engstrom
Xhekaj
Struble

I voted for Harris and Barron

I just feel our bluechip prospects will do what Barron can do but better with his ice time.

Harris is good 5-on-5 against lesser player and can move on the second pairing if needed for his effective even strenght play. He doesn't cost much but it might be better if he's gone in a couple of years for his own career.

Mailloux would have been my third choice because he has more value to bring back something.

Struble can be a cheap depth option who brings a physical game and play on the penalty kill.

 

[1909]

. Ad they played 4 on 4Adam. E probably stays. Talked to some guys at red and white today. Said he second best player on ice behind only Hutson. That's including Mailloux and Rainbacher

very hard to judge the real vlue of d-men in intersquad games. No real forecheck, no hits. And they played 4 on 4. For me, it is not appropriate to judge any of them because it was pond hockey between friends.

 

[Mister Hab]

Still some question marks (defensively for a few)...need more time to re-assess.

Xhekaj: everyone is a fan of what he brings to the team, but still hoping he gets better and better DEFENSIVELY.

Mailloux: we all know what he can do OFFENSIVELY (major potential), but he needs time (AHL) to improve DEFENSIVELY.

Barron: he might be more of a two-way dman...compared to Xhekaj and Mailloux. But, it's hard to deny the size/height/grit/toughness that Xhekaj and Mailloux bring. I just hope they keep working on their defense 'cause in playoffs you can't win without strong/tough/no-mistake DEFENSE.

Struble: the most underrated dman in our system, imo. We need more grit, not less...and Struble definitely can bring grit and defense.

 

[WeThreeKings]

Too early to tell.

It depends on the development of the young defenseman, but I'd say I'm pretty confident Hutson-Guhle-Reinbacher-Xhekaj are 4 of the 6.

 

[Habs Icing]

I know the OP asks which of the young d-men will be traded. The word young is what's throwing me off. I think which of our d-men will be traded first is the real question and here's my answer in order of preference:

Wideman
Kovacevic
Savard
and, depending on how well he plays and how well the young ones respond, Matheson.

There's no pressing need to move any young d-men. Not until the end of the season. If Bourassa was correct when he said a week is a long time in politics, then a year in hockey is an eternity.