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The Habs are one point away from the playoffs: to get there, it’s going to take some help at center

Last night, as my colleague Raph Simard wrote earlier this morning, several of the Canadiens’ rivals in the playoff race lost hockey games last night.

Yes, the CH also lowered its flag in Edmonton, but it was in overtime. #OnePoint

But that means that on this trade deadline day, the Canadiens find themselves just one small point away from the playoffs. Is that what it means to be #InTheMix for the playoffs?

(Credit: NHL.com)

The optimists will say that one point is not much… especially since several clubs in the race are selling.

But those who are the type to see the glass as half empty will say that there are several good teams to surpass to qualify and that the CH, which has a 15% chance of making the playoffs, is a team that has holes right now.

For example? The second center position.

If the Canadiens want to qualify for the playoffs, it can’t be done with Owen Beck in the role he currently has. After all, he plays eight minutes per game (yesterday, it was 8:22) and he’s not top-notch right now.

Maybe one day, when he has a bit more experience, he’ll be able to face the Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl of the world. But yesterday, he couldn’t, and his line played little.

Right now, it’s not complicated: the Canadiens have a first line and an effective bottom-6. But the second line, starting with the center position, is not up to par. And to make the playoffs, it’s going to take some help.

But since Kent Hughes shouldn’t be playing in the players’ rental market and a top-line transaction is mainly done in the summer, we can doubt the arrival of a top-6 center today.

But we’ll see what happens.

Jake Evans had a good game yesterday and he’s in town to stay. And Christian Dvorak, who shouldn’t be traded today, can also help the CH until the end of the season – in his own way.

But Nick Suzuki can’t do everything alone, and if management wants to push for the playoffs, they have to do something. But how much do they want to push for the playoffs, exactly?

Yesterday, the Canadiens did well overall in a 3-2 loss. There was a certain playoff atmosphere during the game since both teams had things to prove.

The playoffs have started, the coach recently said…

Even if the team on fire (the Canadiens) lost to a team that was going nowhere, the Montrealers showed that they wanted their GM to be in action on the trade deadline.

And when I say in action, I don’t mean selling.

overtime

– What’s happening in the Mikko Rantanen file?

– Patience in Philly regarding Scott Laughton.

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Top-5 : A 20th goal for Matvei Michkov

Last night, the CH was in action, but rivals of the club in the race for the playoffs were also in action.

The Red Wings, Bruins, Blue Jackets, and Flyers all lost in regulation, which greatly helped Montreal.

Here are the results and highlights:

1. Matvei Michkov is the first rookie to score 20 goals

In the Calder Trophy race, we often talk about Lane Hutson and Macklin Celebrini.

However, we should not count out Matvei Michkov too soon. Since his return from the Four Nations Confrontation, the Russian has been on fire. And yesterday, he became the first rookie to reach the 20-goal mark this season.

This goal was not enough, however, as Philadelphia lost 4-1 to the Winnipeg Jets.

The Canadian team had no problem with John Tortorella’s squad, scoring two quick goals in the middle of the second period.

Mark Scheifele and Gabriel Vilardi each had three points.

A direct rival of the CH who earned 0 points in the evening.

2. A catastrophic end to the game for the Bruins

In Carolina, the Bruins held their own against Sebastian Aho and his team until the very end.

But a broken stick hurt the Bruins at the end of the game.

This goal was obviously the winning goal.

Result: the Bruins lost in regulation.

Here is the reaction of the Bruins’ watch party.

In the first period, Sebastian Aho broke the ice in the game in a beautiful way while shorthanded.

He became the first player in the organization’s history to score 20 goals in such circumstances.

It was probably Mikko Rantanen’s last game in Carolina, who should be traded to the Stars after the game.

A second direct rival of the CH who earned 0 points in the evening.

3. After a fight against Mathieu Olivier, he cuts his nails with scissors

Two days ago, Mathieu Olivier agreed to a six-year contract with the Blue Jackets in Columbus.

Yesterday, he celebrated this contract with a fight against Jonah Gadjovich.

He then took the opportunity to cut his nails… with scissors.

Oh well.

The Panthers finally won 3-0.

Sergei Bobrovsky is unbeaten in his last three starts.

In the first period, Sam Reinhart ended an eight-game goalless drought.

12 if we count the games of the Four Nations Confrontation.

A third direct rival of the CH who earned 0 points in the evening.

4. Mikhail Sergachev hits Moritz Seider in the face

In Detroit, Utah was visiting for the first time in its history.

And it wasn’t a quiet game between two teams without a rivalry.

First, Dylan Larkin created the equalizer in the first period by falling.

Karel Vejmelka, the team’s goalkeeper, who recently extended his contract, kept the fort.

What a save against one of the best scorers in the NHL, Alex DeBrincat.

At the end of the period, Mikhail Sergachev had had enough of Moritz Seider.

He hit him in the face.

The visitors finally won 4-2.

A fourth direct rival of the CH who earned 0 points in the evening.

5. Welcome to the new players on the Lightning!

On the Lightning, Yanni Gourde played his first game with the team since 2021.

As for Oliver Bjorkstrand, it was his first game with the team. The former Kraken players earned a point on Bjorkstrand’s goal. The art of making a good first impression.

But the real hero of this game is Jake Guentzel.

He scored a hat-trick in a 6-5 win for his team against the poor Sabres of Buffalo.

This is a 30th win for goalkeeper Andrei Vasilevskiy this season.

A fifth rival of the CH – oh well, never mind.

Overtime

– The Flames earn a point.

– What a goal!

– Wow.

– 300th point for Clayton Keller.

(Credit: NHL.com)

– Six games on the schedule tonight.

(Credit: Google)
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The Hurricanes trade Mikko Rantanen to the Stars

With the transaction deadline in the NHL coming up in a few hours, the big question was whether Mikko Rantanen was going to change addresses.

After all, the Hurricanes had acquired him a few weeks ago… but he didn’t seem open to signing a long-term deal.

And finally, tonight, we got our answer: Rantanen will have only passed through Raleigh. He was traded to the Stars.

More details to come…

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A big point obtained by the Canadian in Edmonton

Tonight, the Canadiens played late.

They faced the Edmonton Oilers and for those who missed the game, here are the highlights:

And the lineups:

In the first period, Corey Perry stuck out his hands.

He mocked Samuel Montembeault, Jayden Struble, and Lane Hutson.

After killing off a 5 on 3, Cole Caufield, freshly on the ice, created a turnaround and scored his 31st goal of the season.

He has now scored in a fourth consecutive game.

In the second period, the Oilers’ fifth power play finally got the better of the Canadiens’ fifth penalty kill.

Leon Draisaitl outsmarted Samuel Montembeault with a perfect shot.

But as in the first period, Montreal tied the game.

Lane Hutson did all the work for Joel Armia, who scored his 11th goal of the season.

In the third period, the Oilers dominated but never managed to pierce the Montembeault wall.

Off to overtime, then!

Both teams seemed to be heading for a shootout, but Evan Bouchard, who made 1000 turnarounds during the game, outsmarted Montembeault.

Final score: 3-2 Oilers, who put an end to the Canadiens’ five-game winning streak. Big point earned, however.

On Saturday, Martin St-Louis’ team will face the Flames at home.

Overtime

– Poor him.

– Transaction during the game.

– Another Centre Bell far from Montreal.

– New strategy.

– I would have done better.

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A first choice for Wallman, a second (and a hope) for Dumoulin: what is Savard worth, then?

Earlier today, Brian Dumoulin took the road to New Jersey. In return, the Ducks got a second-round pick and a prospect.

Later in the day, the Oilers acquired Jake Wallman for a conditional first-round pick. This transaction is not yet official, but it’s clear that a first-round pick is involved.

I’m not saying David Savard is as good as those two guys, but it seems like a second-round pick is not too much to ask for from the CH. According to Pierre LeBrun, that’s what Kent Hughes is asking for in return for his services.

With the happy sequence in Montreal, does the GM want to trade his right-handed defenseman for a distant second-round pick, even?

The CH is at the door of the playoffs and even if they don’t trade Armia and Savard, trading one would send a bad message to the players, who believe in it more than ever. After all, Montreal already has two second-round picks, including the one from the Penguins, who are going nowhere.

Wallman for a top-32 pick is a lot. It’s not like the Oilers need another defensively poor defenseman…

It seems like a desperate move from Stan Bowman, and who knows, maybe a team will pay just as much for David Savard by tomorrow… Maybe the Oilers will see Savard in action up close tonight and say, “we must get our hands on a guy who is excellent defensively like him.”

But for Montreal, that would leave a big hole. The 58 has 134 blocked shots this season (he’s 10th in the NHL in that regard) and plays 17:43 minutes per game. Before the game, Benoit Brunet also mentioned that with Kaiden Guhle’s injury, it changes the situation: Savard comes to stabilize this young and very inexperienced defensive line.

Will Kent Hughes get a first-round pick for Savard? Probably not (I lean towards “no”). Can he trade him at a good price? Certainly. But a trade would come with its own set of negatives.

Rapid Fire

– To be continued.

– No victory for Victory. I’ve been waiting a long time for this play on words.

– A return to Montreal for him?

– He never stops.

– He should be a GM.

– Very impressive.

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Brad Marchand: there is a general feeling that he will be traded

Brad Marchand is the heart and soul of the Boston Bruins. He truly represents the team’s tough-to-play-against style with a bit of an edge.

He’s normally the type of player who should finish his career in Boston, but circumstances are such that he could be traded. The Bruins are quietly falling out of the playoff race and the team could capitalize on their captain’s value.

According to Chris Johnston, of TSN, there’s a general feeling in the league that Marchand will be traded to a team in the West. He also reports that despite talks of a new contract, everything indicates that Boston is leaning towards a trade.

There’s no doubt that the Colorado Avalanche comes to mind when speculating about a team that could acquire Marchand. The window is wide open for the team to go far in the playoffs and it’s clear that adding Marchand could help.

If this comes to fruition, it will be a step towards rebuilding in Boston. The team isn’t competing like they used to and even though they managed to beat the Maple Leafs in the first round last year, it stopped there.

There’s been a lack of talent since David Krejci and Patrice Bergeron left, and Pastrnak and Marchand can’t be the only ones scoring goals.

We’ll see what the Bruins do, but the decision to trade Marchand could have a huge domino effect on the team’s next few years.

In a hurry

– A whole cup of coffee.

– The details are not simple in the Oilers’ transaction for Walman.

– Not a big defense.

– To watch tonight.

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David Savard: the CH is asking for a 2nd round pick for his services

As the CH prepares to play an important game against the Edmonton Oilers, Kent Hughes is not idle at the moment.

While he juggles the possibility of trading Joel Armia and David Savard, he won’t do it at any price.

Pierre LeBrun mentioned that the price for each of them individually is a 2nd round pick and more. For Armia, it was already known, but for Savard, it’s a relatively high price. The Winnipeg Jets would also be interested in his services.

Where it becomes interesting is that LeBrun mentions that even if teams are desperate tomorrow, it’s not a guarantee that the CH will trade them.

Hughes is ready to keep them, but reserves the right to think if an attractive offer comes to the table.

It’s quite surprising to see the prices that some teams offer to other teams for depth players. Savard for a 2nd round pick is quite surprising, especially considering his age.

If an offer comes up, he will have to think seriously about it. In any case, I wouldn’t want to be in the shoes of the CH’s general manager.

On the one hand, the players are sending a clear message to the management for a push for the playoffs, but there’s also the long-term plan to consider.

I wonder if it wouldn’t be better for Hughes to complete a more medium-term transaction by adding a player who could help the team for the next 4-5-6 years. It’s sure that the price would be high, but the CH has the prospects and picks to dance. Dylan Cozens is definitely an intriguing player that the CH could target.

This way, a trade of this kind would send a good message to the players not only in the short term but also for the future. It’s usually easier to make this type of transaction in the summer, but if the right proposal is there, why not?

In a hurry

– Another transaction.

– It was necessary.

– Beautiful goal!

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“It’s sure he’s going to be in demand”: Tony Marinaro says teams are going to call for Reinbacher

We don’t know what the Canadian will do regarding the trade deadline, tomorrow.

We don’t know if Kent Hughes will add a player to his roster to help them fight for a playoff spot.

But there is one thing we do know, however. Kent Hughes will not trade his best prospects in order to get help. That’s not part of his identity as a GM and it’s not part of his plan. Unless he decides to deviate from that plan… But that would be really surprising.

That doesn’t prevent teams from calling the Canadian to discuss a potential trade.

And at that level, Tony Marinaro believes that there are teams that will call by tomorrow to inquire about David Reinbacher, who has been doing well since his return to Laval.

He discussed it on the set of the JiC show earlier in the evening (TVA Sports):

It’s certain that he will be in demand. – Tony Marinaro

Note: Tony Marinaro is not saying that Kent Hughes is looking to trade his player.

He even believes that there is no chance of seeing Reinbacher being traded.

That being said, it seems that I jumped to conclusions when I saw those comments because it’s the first time we’ve heard Reinbacher’s name in a discussion like that.

But ultimately, Marinaro is right: teams will call because things are going really well for Reinbacher since his return to the game.

We wouldn’t say that he missed several months of activities this season due to his injury that required surgery:

We will have to be patient with Reinbacher because he needs to take the time to play games in Laval in order to progress.

The Canadian will give him the opportunity to develop at his own pace… But seeing Reinbacher play, it’s possible to believe that he will play in the NHL soon.

This is encouraging for the organization and the fans of the Montreal Canadian.

In rafale

– Carson Soucy is going to New York.

– I say win. 4-1!

– Good point.

– It’s been a long time…

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No points in seven games: Things are going really badly for Connor Bedard

When he was selected by the Blackhawks with the first overall pick in the 2023 draft, Connor Bedard was seen as the next big star of the National League.

He had already been talked about for some time as the “next thing” … But we are still waiting to see him explode.

Especially since recently, it’s really tough for the young Hawks player.

This puts him at the center of some criticism right now.

In Chicago, some are even wondering if he will really become the player we thought he would become…

Because he has “only” 16 goals this season and has been shut out in his last seven games, some Hawks fans are worried.

And the person concerned knows that right now, he is in a frustrating period.

He would like to produce offensively… But he is not able to do so:

In fact, it’s true that Bedard – who has 49 points (16 goals) in 62 games this season – is not producing up to expectations.

We all thought he would come into the NHL and be able to dominate quickly, like Sidney Crosby and Connor McDavid did before him.

Bedard did finish his junior career with 71 goals and 143 points in just 57 games with the Regina Pats.

It’s certain that there would be high expectations for his arrival in the National League…

But what worries many is that Bedard has not progressed since last year.

When we look at his numbers, we realize that he is in decline compared to last season:

(Credit: HockeyDB)

He scores fewer goals, gets fewer assists, is less disciplined… And Bedard is also struggling in the face-off circle.

In 23-24, he had a 38.9% face-off win percentage.

In 24-25, his performance drops to 36.8%…

We all agree that it’s tough for him to shine in Chicago because he has no one to help him.

Ryan Donato is having a good season… But when Ryan Donato is your top goal scorer, it’s because something is wrong.

That being said, Bedard is only 19 years old and he still has time to break through. He has the talent to do so, at least.

But for that to happen, the Hawks need to support him a bit… or else they will scrap the development of one of the most anticipated prospects in sports in recent years.

In a hurry

– I still get chills!

– To be continued.

– Minor signing in Calgary.

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Rumor corner: The Bruins are listening to offers for Marchand

The Bruins are in a bit of a weird position right now.

The Boston team is three points away from a playoff spot… But we still expect them to trade some of their players before the trade deadline, which is tomorrow.

And among them, we hear about the team’s captain (who is injured) in some rumors. The Bruins are listening to offers for Brad Marchand right now:

It might be logical to see the Bruins trade their captain.

Marchand will be 37 years old in May and in the context where the Bruins don’t have many pieces for the future, the time might be well chosen to maximize his value.

Because at some point, we’ll have to think about rebuilding in Boston…

Note that guys like Brandon Carlo, Morgan Geegie, and Justin Brazeau could also change addresses by tomorrow with the Bruins.

We expect Don Sweeney to side with the sellers:

Rantanen doesn’t want to go to Los Angeles

As it goes, it’s getting harder to know what Mikko Rantanen wants.

He declined an offer of at least $100M in Carolina… And even if the Hurricanes made his acquisition at a high price in recent weeks, everything indicates that he could still be traded by tomorrow.

What we know right now is that the main interested party is not interested in signing a long-term deal in Los Angeles.

He doesn’t want to wear the Kings’ uniform long-term:

Rantanen would like to sign a contract extension with a team where he sees himself playing for a long time.

The possibility of seeing the Hurricanes do a “sign and trade” is on the table… But so is the possibility of Rantanen staying in Carolina.

The file is a bit complicated right now:

I really get the impression that Rantanen is dragging out the file because his goal is to test the free agent market on July 1st.

We know, after all, that his salary demands are huge… And that he probably has a better chance of getting the contract he wants by being a free agent this summer.

But overall, it’s time for this file to be settled because it’s starting to get heavy.

Four clubs cited for Scott Laughton’s services

There is interest in Scott Laughton.

I wonder how much the teams’ plans have changed after the signing of Jake Evans, who is a player similar to Laughton’s…

That being said, Laughton knows he has a chance to leave Philadelphia and David Pagnotta cited the name of four teams that seem to want to acquire him.

The informant, in a recent article, talks about the Senators, the Leafs, the Devils, and the Jets:

According to Pagnotta, the Flyers want a first-round pick or a quality prospect in return for the player.

Again, I wonder what Evans’ value would look like if he were available on the market, knowing that the Flyers are asking for as much for Laughton…

But the market is crazy right now and in my eyes, it’s certain that a team will panic and offer the price the Flyers want in the transaction.

Laughton has the qualities to help a team that wants to go all the way.

And players like him are starting to become rare on the market…

In passing

– Too good.

– Logical.

– Beautiful video.

– So much the better.