Author: Dose

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I would not be surprised if the CH had sounded out Mikko Rantanen

The big transaction of the day in the NHL is the one that sent Mikko Rantanen to Dallas. The winger, who only passed through Carolina, has therefore been traded for the second time in 2025.

But this time, it should be the right one considering that Rantanen has an eight-year agreement (at $12 million per year) in his pocket.

So, in the long term, Rantanen will evolve within a team that should be competitive for several years, including this season. This was probably something that Rantanen, who has been playing playoff hockey since 2018, was looking for. We’ll get back to that.

Now, what’s interesting is that in a special episode of the 32 Thoughts Podcast tonight, Elliotte Friedman talked about the trade deadline… and he had this to say:

I wouldn’t be surprised if the Canadiens had tested the waters for Mikko Rantanen. – Elliotte Friedman

Friedman is not convinced that the Canadiens talked to the Hurricanes in this regard (and we can doubt that the latter would have wanted to send him to another Eastern Conference team), but he knows that Rantanen avoided certain teams that were not competitive “now”.

And according to him, the Canadiens may be one of those teams.

In fact, a guy like Rantanen would have made sense for the Tricolore. Getting him this season would have been a great gift for the group, and at 28 years old, he could have been a part of the team’s future with a long-term contract. However, the Finn wanted a competitive team now… and the Canadiens are not (really) sure to make the playoffs this season.

Maybe that’s why if talks took place, they didn’t advance to a particularly critical stage.

That being said, we’re talking about a link that, fundamentally, makes sense. And if it had materialized, it would have been a big topic of conversation in town… but in the end, he’s in Dallas, far from Montreal.

Extension

Note that in the podcast, Friedman talked about teams that, in his opinion, may try to make big moves this summer. He mentioned Utah as a team that, in the eyes of many, may be looking to land big names… but he also placed the Canadiens in that category.

And with Ivan Demidov arriving, maybe suddenly, players will no longer place the Canadiens in the category of teams that are “not competitive now”, but rather in the category of competitive teams, period. That could also change the situation… and it could help the club attract a top-6 center, a need in town right now.

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Mike Matheson : His agent thinks he could stay in Montreal

We all know that the Montreal Canadiens have one of the most beautiful prospect pools in the NHL.

Already, the current core is very young (Suzuki, Slafkovsky, Caufield, Hutson, Guhle…), and there are also Ivan Demidov, Michael Hage, and Jacob Fowler who will eventually join the club.

However, you can’t win with just young players: you need veterans to surround them.

It’s a bit difficult to predict which veterans will still be with the club in three years, but there’s one in particular who has a good chance of staying in the Quebec metropolis.

This is what Mike Matheson’s agent recently mentioned about his client in an interview with TVA Sports.

Philippe Lecavalier, who is also the agent of Alexandre Carrier and Kris Letang (among others), seems quite confident that Matheson will stay with the Canadiens after his contract (which ends next year).

In the interview with TVA Sports, Lecavalier praised his client’s qualities, especially his skating, while mentioning that he is still young enough to be part of the team’s core for a few more years.

« He is also very fast. Usually, what hurts an aging player the most is that they slow down. But in Michael’s case, he’s not slowing down, and I don’t think that will happen, even at 40 years old. » – Philippe Lecavalier

It’s hard not to agree with him, since Matheson’s skating is undoubtedly his greatest asset.

Even if he slows down with age, he will still be faster than other players his age.

Okay, I don’t know how effective Matheson will be at 40, but he won’t be a turtle.

Obviously, as a Montrealer, Matheson wants to stay in Montreal.

« For him, playing with the Canadiens is a childhood dream, and continuing his career there is what he wants. » – Philippe Lecavalier

Matheson can help the Canadiens in the coming years, even as he ages, at 31 years old.

The future is bright in Montreal, and it will take veterans like the Quebec defenseman to surround all these young players.

In a nutshell

– Big win for the Laval Rocket.

– A second-round pick for Armia, that’s a pretty interesting return.

– We all want Ovechkin to break Gretzky’s record this season.

– What a dunk by Scottie Barnes.

– A great life experience for this dog.

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Mikko Rantanen : The Hurricanes avoided Toronto to not see him in the playoffs

Several important transactions were completed today on this deadline in the NHL.

Most of the big players available on the market have changed addresses (Mikko Rantanen, Brock Nelson, and Dylan Cozens to name a few).

Rantanen will have finally played only 13 games with the Hurricanes (in which he accumulated six meager points).

It was the Dallas Stars who came out on top in the derby for the Finn.

This trade came with a contract extension of $96 million over eight years ($12 million per year), but according to Nick Kypreos, #96 could have gotten more with another team.

In fact, during the Real Kyper and Bourne show on Sportsnet, Kypreos mentioned that the Toronto Maple Leafs had the best offer.

It was rather the Hurricanes who refused, because they did not want to face Rantanen and the Leafs in the playoffs.

Fraser Minten (who was traded to Boston in the Brandon Carlo trade), Easton Cowan, and two first-round picks were on the table to acquire him.

Even if Logan Stankoven is a better prospect than Cowan and Minten, Carolina could have gotten their hands on the two best prospects of the Leafs, who are not two pawns either.

What makes it even more interesting is that if Rantanen joined Toronto, he would have had a better contract than what he got in Dallas.

“I think the Leafs were willing to spend between $105 and $110 million on an eight-year contract for Rantanen.” – Nick Kypreos

$110 million, that’s a lot of money.

That represents an annual salary of between $13.125 million and $13.75 million.

Obviously, a bigger contract doesn’t necessarily mean more money in the pockets.

We know that in Dallas, Rantanen has less money taken off his contract than if he were in Toronto.

If the contract had been for $110 million in total, Rantanen would have had the second-highest salary in the NHL next year, behind Leon Draisaitl ($14 million per year). Auston Matthews is currently second with an annual salary of $13.25 million.

At first glance, we wonder how the Leafs could afford a salary of over $13 million per season.

However, we must not forget that it’s the last year of John Tavares’ contract ($11 million per year), in addition to the salary cap which will increase significantly.

There was a way to average, as they say.

In a hurry

– An interesting plate for Simoneau.

– 11 points in his last seven games for Sean Farrell.

– Brandon Tanev arrived at the game with his Seattle Kraken bag.

– Spencer Knight stands out again under his new colors with this spectacular save.

– Beautiful ovation.

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Jake Evans knew which teams wanted him (and he still chose Montreal at a discount)

The NHL trade deadline has officially ended.

A lot has happened.

Even though the Montreal Canadiens didn’t make any trades, the signing of Jake Evans (at an excellent price) remains the highlight of the past few days/weeks.

And it’s perfectly fine that Kent Hughes didn’t decide to sell. After all, the signing of Evans meant that the Tricolore would try to make the playoffs, especially with the New York Rangers and Boston Bruins deciding to liquidate the club.

There were a lot of discussions surrounding Evans and his contract extension, to the point where we didn’t know if he would be traded or stay with the club.

From what we understand, there was a lot of interest in the right-handed center, and Kent Hughes even mentioned the teams that wanted to acquire him.

But in the end, Jake Evans decided to choose Montreal, as we can see in this article by Benoît Rioux of TVA Sports.

It’s very interesting to know, since we know that Evans wanted to play in Montreal, and it shows that the chemistry within the club is very good.

All of this can pay off in the long run, as a team that enjoys playing together usually experiences a lot of success.

On this topic, Jake Evans and Joel Armia demonstrated their joy at staying with the team during a press conference a little earlier, and it bodes well for the future.

« Everyone is very happy that these players in the rumors weren’t traded. They represent a big part of the team. I think it sends a message that we’re ready to move on to the next step and the playoffs. » – Jake Evans

« I love the team, I love my teammates. I love being here and playing hockey in Montreal. » – Joel Armia

Definitely, the fact that Evans didn’t change addresses pleases the entire team.

Saying that he came close to being traded… Knowing that we were able to get him at such a low salary, I don’t think the CH could have gotten a good enough return to part with him.

Well played, Kent Hughes.

In a nutshell

– Sacred Caufield.

– We know that’s his strength.

– It’s always nice to see this kind of video.

– The Capitals could have reinforcements before the end of the season with Ryan Leonard.

– Oh boy, he must not be very happy about the trade.

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“You wouldn’t believe me” : the Canucks’ GM destroys Brock Boeser’s value

With the deadline now passed, it’s time for assessments across the NHL.

We can evaluate the transactions made with some perspective… and we can also look at the personnel moves that weren’t made.

In Montreal, it’s mostly the latter category that comes to mind since Kent Hughes didn’t complete a single transaction.

But elsewhere in the NHL, there are other guys who were in the rumors and didn’t move. Among them is Brock Boeser… who is still in Vancouver. And that’s even though his contract ends at the end of the season.

The Canucks’ GM, Patrik Allvin, was questioned about Boeser… and through his comments, he destroyed the value of his player:

If I told you what I was offered for Brock Boeser, I think I would have to run out of here because you would not believe me. – Patrik Allvin

What seems to be understood here is that the Canucks’ GM didn’t receive an offer to his liking for Boeser’s services. That’s why he’s still in town… but these comments go further.

Because what Allvin is saying between the lines is that nobody was willing to pay the high price for Boeser… and that’s what made the GM undermine the value of his player.

Of course, there’s a negotiation game going on: the Canucks probably want to try to come to an agreement with Boeser, and with comments like that, they’re probably trying to reduce the player’s demands for a new deal. Because that was also discussed by Allvin, who claims there are talks between the two parties.

That being said, I have the impression that Boeser, who has been playing big hockey in Vancouver for years, didn’t particularly appreciate seeing his GM talk about him like that. In a market where a guy like Anthony Beauvillier brought back a second-round pick, it’s unrealistic to think that no team made a quality offer to the Canucks for Boeser.

It was a seller’s market, after all… and Boeser has shown he’s a solid top-6 winger who performs in the playoffs.

We’ll see if all this will affect the relationship between Boeser and the Canucks, but the GM’s comments are quite ordinary. I can believe it’s a negotiation game… but there’s a way to do it, and it’s not by publicly undermining the value of your player that you’ll facilitate negotiations.

In a hurry

– Brad Marchand: the second-round pick will become a first-round pick if the forward plays 50% of the Panthers’ playoff games and the team reaches the conference finals.

– Mark Jankowski in Carolina.

– The Golden Knights like Reilly Smith’s versatility.

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96 M$ : Mikko Rantanen had refused the same contract in Colorado

Since last night, the case of Mikko Rantanen has been widely discussed in the NHL. The Hurricanes and the Stars had an agreement in place late last night, but this agreement was conditional on Rantanen reaching a long-term agreement with the Stars.

And that, that was not easy at all. The Stars did not want to give him more than $12 million per year, and Rantanen’s team wanted more.

In the end, Rantanen agreed to sign a $96 million contract over eight years. So, he will make $12 million per year.

What’s interesting in all this is that, according to Georges Laraque, the offer that Rantanen accepted today is identical to the one the Avalanche offered him before trading him.

He discussed this around 1 pm today on BPM Sports.

Laraque notes that the information came from Teemu Selanne, a Finnish compatriot of Rantanen. Slightly lower figures had circulated, but the offer that was on the table for Rantanen was $96 million over eight years.

We know that the Avalanche does not want a player to earn more than Nathan MacKinnon’s annual salary of $12.6 million, so an offer of $12 million per year to Rantanen made sense.

In the end, Rantanen wanted more, so he was traded, and in the end, after two teams and far from what he knew (he was well-established in Colorado, after all), he decided to sign the same contract he had refused in Colorado.

It should be noted that the tax reality in Texas is not the same as in Colorado, which may have played a role in the decision. That being said, we can also think that after seeing three teams refuse to pay him the salary he wanted, he finally understood that he may not be worth $13-14 million per year, and he got tired of constantly being on the move.

Now that Rantanen has signed his big contract, he will have to relaunch his season in Dallas. His time in Carolina will have been a moment to forget, but now, he will have to play big hockey with his new team.

At least, he feels that the fit is good for him in Dallas. Let’s see what it will bring.

Rapid Fire

– Don Sweeney admits: it was a difficult day.

– Still.

– Minor transaction between the Bruins and the Devils.

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Mikko Rantanen : the Hurricanes got enough value, but…

For two months, Mikko Rantanen has been widely discussed in the NHL. The Hurricanes tried to make a big move by acquiring him in January, but 13 games later, Rantanen is now a member of the Dallas Stars.

He clearly did not want to sign a long-term contract in Raleigh, and the Hurricanes did not want to make the same mistake they did with Jake Guentzel last year.

In return for Rantanen, the Hurricanes received Logan Stankoven, two first-round picks, and two third-round picks. It’s a nice haul, and when you combine the two trades involving Rantanen, it seems that the Hurricanes don’t appear to be crazy in terms of value.

However, even if the team managed to “save face” by trading Rantanen to the Stars, there’s still something that bothers me about this whole saga for a simple reason: the Hurricanes’ goal is to win the Stanley Cup this season.

Did the team get a lot of value? Yes, especially if we consider that Martin Necas was destined to leave. From that perspective, the Hurricanes did well, but that’s not the right perspective to take, in my opinion.

I’m asking you: if you want to win the Stanley Cup this year, what would you rather have on your team?

  • Mikko Rantanen
  • Martin Necas and Jack Drury
  • Logan Stankoven and picks

For me, that’s where the Hurricanes seem to be wrong. The team acted like a rebuilding team that wanted to maximize the value of its assets, when in reality, the team should be trying to field the best possible lineup.

And for me, that’s where it gets even worse, when the team’s GM, Eric Tulsky, admits that the Rantanen saga took so long to resolve that it prevented the Hurricanes from going after other reinforcements. I get the impression that the team’s plan was to use the picks acquired for Rantanen to go after immediate help (Brock Boeser? Elias Pettersson?), but they spent so much energy on Rantanen that they ended up empty-handed.

I’m repeating myself: in the circumstances, the Hurricanes managed to salvage things by getting a lot of value for Rantanen’s services. I just think that in the circumstances, the team didn’t prioritize the right thing.

In any case, if I were Sebastian Aho today, I would be pretty angry to see that my team is worse than it was yesterday. Because if Kent Hughes is being criticized by some for being inactive today, the Canadiens’ GM didn’t weaken his team, at least.

In rapid fire

– The Canadiens were inactive at the trade deadline: a first since 2013.

– Do you think Cole Caufield is happy that Christian Dvorak wasn’t traded?

– Being traded for a future seventh-round pick, wow.

– Do you agree?

– Reinforcements in Boston.

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A lot of discontent towards Kent Hughes for sticking to his plan

The fact that he was seen being completely inactive in the trade market has led many people to feel that the GM has abandoned his team in the playoff race.

There is a fear that players will be upset about this.

In fact, people are afraid that players will get discouraged, that the team will barely miss the playoffs (which is bad for the draft), and that the GM didn’t maximize the value of his rental players in a seller’s market.

As if the playoff race wasn’t worth anything in terms of experience for the players…

I was expecting the GM to use his last salary retention right or to be active to help the Rocket – apart from paper transactions. On this, I agree that it’s a missed opportunity, even if it will give some maneuvering room for the draft since the team will have a retention space available.

And this, even if Kent Hughes said that the Rocket, when healthy, had enough elements.

Not selling Joel Armia and David Savard, two guys who wanted to stay in town, despite high prices, is a bit like buying since you’re passing on the opportunity to add elements.

It must count for something, right?

And as for buying, we can see that the prices didn’t make sense. We’ll have to wait until this summer to complete some transactions to help the team.

In my eyes, it’s logical. Renting a player wasn’t worth it, and big trades are often made in the summer.

Hughes, who made a good move this week by signing Jake Evans at a discount, sent the message that he believed in his team and not the other way around. Even when buying, you can hurt your team… #AskBradyTkachuk

He was also aware of the market: many rivals sold, and the Canadiens didn’t. That gives them an advantage.

Hughes accepted to wait until this summer to settle his free agent files, even if the team can’t compete for the Stanley Cup. If I’m a Canadiens player who has lived through the last few years, I like what I see.

The group stayed together… and the team is #IntheMix. All’s well that ends well?

extension

Yes, this data makes the Canadiens look bad… but we can also make a list of teams that didn’t sell and find the Canadiens on it. Even the Hurricanes sold today, to a certain extent. Would you have wanted the Canadiens to trade a star player?

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“It’s on your shoulders” : Kent Hughes confirms that Nick Suzuki understood his message

Now that the NHL trade deadline has passed, one thing is clear: the Canadiens did not make any moves today. The club did not acquire any reinforcements (they would have probably had to overpay to do so), but more interestingly, they were not sellers.

Jake Evans (who has a new contract), Joel Armia, David Savard, and Christian Dvorak are all still in town.

A month ago, all of this seemed unlikely at best. The team was struggling at the start of the break, but they have responded well since returning to action, earning 11 points out of a possible 12.

We knew that Nick Suzuki had spoken to Kent Hughes, asking him not to sell at the deadline. However, today, the GM discussed that conversation and shared what he told his captain:

It’s on your shoulders. Don’t come here and tell us not to do something if you haven’t done what you’re supposed to do. – Kent Hughes to Nick Suzuki

What we understand, then, is that the GM challenged his captain that day. He was clear with him: if Suzuki wanted the team to not be sellers, he would have to give him a good reason.

And the good reason finally came in the form of 13 points in six games for the captain since the team returned to action. This led the team to victories and put them back in the playoff hunt.

The GM is really happy with how his captain responded to the challenge, and in the end, he rewarded him by not being a seller. And that’s despite the fact that it seemed unrealistic a month ago.

This also means that the captain is satisfied with his GM’s work. He’s happy that his teammates didn’t get traded, a scene he’s seen many times in recent years.

Now that the GM has rewarded the group by acquiring reinforcements by not selling, it’s up to the players to prove to the GM that he made the right decision in believing in them. The contract extension of Jake Evans must have motivated the players earlier in the week, and seeing the group intact today is another good piece of news.

The road to the playoffs won’t be easy, but the players have received a vote of confidence from the GM today. And that’s already a good thing.

In brief

– Martin St-Louis is also happy.

– The Hurricanes’ GM feels that Mikko Rantanen never felt at home in Carolina.

– Here are the favorites to win the Stanley Cup after the trade deadline.

– Can’t wait to see it.

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Oliver Kapanen could join the Rocket at the end of his season

After playing 12 games with the Canadiens at the beginning of the season, Oliver Kapanen was sent back to Europe.

The CH thought it was better for his development to go play in a league where he can dominate.

But we could see him again soon, this same Kapanen…

At least, that’s what we can believe when we hear Kent Hughes say that the player could join the Rocket when his season in Europe is over.

This would be a great help to Laval:

Let’s recall that Jakub Dobes and Owen Beck – a paper transaction – will also be eligible to participate in the playoffs in the American League.

Dobes, Beck, Kapanen… Ah, and there’s also Jacob Fowler in all this who should/may join the ranks of the Rocket once his season is over in the NCAA.

It’s going to be interesting: the Rocket will have three young goalkeepers (Dobes, Primeau, and Fowler) at their disposal… And it will be interesting to see what the coaches’ plan will be.

Who will we trust? That’s the question…

That being said, it’s good to see that these guys could experience the excitement of the playoffs because they would have the opportunity to play important games. We know that young players gain a lot of experience in moments like these, and the CH organization is surely aware of this too.

And with the Rocket’s firepower, the team will have a chance to go all the way!

In brief

– Jakub Dobes will face the Flames tomorrow.

– Aubé-Kubel is going to New York.

– Good point.

– Good read.