The Montreal Canadiens could have a busy offseason after being eliminated from the postseason.
The Montreal Canadiens didn’t deserve to make the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Back in March, they had less than a 1% chance of making the postseason. But the pandemic allowed them to sneak in as the 12th seed in the Eastern Conference and they were able to make the postseason after upsetting the Pittsburgh Penguins in the play-in round.
Though the Canadiens fought hard against the Philadelphia Flyers and certainly didn’t go down easy, they ultimately lost to them in six games. In losing to them, the Canadiens were shown how much further they have to go to be Stanley Cup contenders.
With an aging Carey Price and Shea Weber, the Habs time to win is now. They won’t remain great players forever. But at the same time, the Canadiens’ future is clearly their focus, as they have a very impressive prospect pool and their young players stood out in the postseason.
If the Canadiens want to be taken seriously as Stanley Cup contenders, they need to make some moves this offseason. That’s likely going to require them to make some trades, as they already have a fairly complete roster. Here’s a look at three players the Canadiens should trade.
3. Max Domi
Max Domi is a darn good player. But one has to wonder how valuable he is to the Montreal Canadiens. He’s due for a raise this offseason and the Habs might not want to be the ones to give it to him. Domi says he wants to be a center. But honestly, Montreal would be better off with him at the wing.
Nick Suzuki, Philip Dannault, and Jesperi Kotkaniemi each have locked down spots down the middle for next season. It makes no sense to have any of those three guys as the fourth-line center. So where does that leave Domi?
As I said before, the Canadiens have a surprisingly stacked lineup if everyone’s healthy. They’ll have a number of young forwards pushing for roster spots. Ultimately, that’s what’s important for the Canadiens right now. Don’t be surprised if Domi is traded for some defensive help.