The Montreal Canadiens are expected to be buyers ahead of the March 6 trade deadline, but the team could move out a player.
Montreal took a swing to acquire Patrik Laine, but it hasn’t worked out as he’s been injured throughout his tenure. With Laine in the final year of his deal, his name has come up in trade rumors. Trading him will also help Montreal clear some cap space for moves.
NHL analyst Jeremy Tingly of NHLTradeRumors linked the Canadiens to trading Laine to the Chicago Blackhawks.
The Blackhawks are looking to next year and could see Laine as a project for the rest of this season, and get first crack at him to sign a longer-term extension in the summer,” Tingly wrote. “The Blackhawks need secondary scoring behind Connor Bedard’s line. And when Laine is healthy and producing, there’s not many better at putting the puck in the net.”
Laine could help Chicago score, and it wouldn’t cost much for the Blackhawks to acquire him. With Laine in the final year of his four-year, $34.8 million deal, Chicago can take a flier on him to see if he’s worth extending this offseason.
Laine has skated in just 5 games, recording 1 assist this season as he’s dealt with an injury, but is expected to return soon.
Canadiens Need to Move Players Off Their Roster
Laine’s name has come up in trade rumors as Montreal will look to clear some cap space.
The Canadiens don’t have a clear spot for playing time for Laine when he returns from injury. With that, Canadiens insider Eric Engels of Sportsnet believes Montreal will look to shop Laine. The team will also retain money on his deal.
“We would expect the Canadiens to need to retain up to half of Laine’s prorated $9.1-million salary to get the remainder of his expiring $8.7-million cap hit off their books,” Engels wrote. “But coupling that sacrifice with an asset to move him doesn’t appear to be on the table. According to league sources who confirmed his name has been out there.
“We’ll see if that changes if Laine hasn’t been traded by deadline day. Although Gorton wouldn’t touch the subject, he did acknowledge something might need to be subtracted from the Canadiens, regardless. If not to clear cap space, then to clear the logjam at the bottom end of the roster.”
Montreal acquired Laine from the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2024.
Laine Still Battling Injuries
The Canadiens announced Laine underwent surgery to repair a core muscle injury at the end of October. It was expected that he’d be out 3-4 months.
The hope was that Laine would return after the Olympic break, but that isn’t the case. At the Canadiens’ first practice, Montreal announced Laine wouldn’t participate due to the injury.
“Forward Patrik Laine will not participate in today’s practice (lower body, is being evaluated on a daily basis),” the team wrote in a statement on X.
If the Canadiens are going to trade Laine before the March 6 deadline, Montreal needs him to likely get into a game or two. So, Laine returning to practice is of the utmost importance.
Canadiens Linked to Trading Star $34.8M Sniper to Surprise Western Team