The Montreal Canadiens have a clear need for a second-line center and could look to pull off a blockbuster trade.
Heavy.com has a trade idea that sees the Canadiens acquiring Elias Pettersson from the Vancouver Canucks in a blockbuster deal.
Canadiens acquire:
Canucks acquire:
- Kirby Dach
- 2027 1st-roud pick
The proposed deal would be a blockbuster as Montreal would acquire Pettersson to be the second-line center for a first-round pick and forward Kirby Dach, who could be moved this offseason.
Pettersson is entering the third year of his eight-year, $92.8 million deal and has taken a step back since signing the massive extension. However, he has been a 100-point player before, and as a second-line center, perhaps it will ease the burden and get him back on track. Pettersson recorded 15 goals and 36 assists for 51 points in 74 games last season, but his career high is 102 points, showing he can be an elite player. The Canadiens need a true No. 2 center, and Pettersson could be just that for years to come.
In return, the Canadiens would give a first-round pick as well as Dach, who can be a key part of the Canucks future. Dach is an RFA and doesn’t have a contract, but he is a solid middle-six forward. He’s just 25-years-old and can be a second-line center in Vancouver and replace the void of Pettersson, while the Canucks get out of the contract. Dach recorded 8 goals and 7 assists for 15 points in 37 games last season.
Second-Line Center a Major Need for Canadiens
Montreal has Nick Suzuki locked up as the Canadiens’ first-line center, but outside of him, the position gets thin.
The other three centers are Dach, Phillip Danault, and Jake Evans, so they needed to get better down the middle. It was also the biggest need to address this offseason, according to Sportsnet’s Eric Engels.
“It’s the top priority, even if it’s not the only one, and Kent Hughes has a history of making his biggest moves before July 1,” Engels wrote. “I know he’s pushing very hard to repeat that history. But the free agent market isn’t overflowing with quality players. It’s actually quite barren of them, making the trade market a real sellers’ market. And that might make it a little less possible than in recent history for Hughes to acquire what he’s after.”
However, to begin the NHL offseason, the Canadiens haven’t made any additions and instead have just re-signed their own players.
Montreal Could Trade Dach
With the Canadiens looking to upgrade at center, Dach’s name has come up in trade rumors.
NHL insider David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period recently reported that Montreal is open to the idea of trading Dach.
“Like I mentioned Jack Quinn with Buffalo around draft time, Kirby Dach’s name also has been circulating around the trade ranks,” Pagnotta said. “He’s an RFA. They have to figure out what they want to do … but his name has been circulating around the trade world.
“With the Canadiens still looking to upgrade their 2C position, and they have been obviously engaged in talks with other teams of some of their other star players to see if they can bring in another star, add to this arsenal. Maybe Dach is a player that’s utilized in some type of package along those lines, but his name, as I said, has been circulating. We’ll see if it continues to as the summer moves along.”
Dach has skated in 306 career games, recording 51 goals and 85 assists for 136 points.
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