It’s time for another edition of the Montreal Canadiens mailbag!
This week, we’ll be covering topics such as trade assets, Patrik Laine’s future with the organization, prospect shelf life, mangoes, and much more.
Montreal Canadiens Mailbag
Elthon Aragao asks:
Have the Habs reached the point where Kent Hughes needs to use his assets (picks and prospects) to acquire established players in the league?
Absolutely. Though I’d argue Kent Hughes has already reached that point, as evidenced by the last few trades.
He’s not a fan of moving prospects, even though he did trade Logan Mailloux, but draft picks are his favoured method of acquiring players, and that won’t change moving forward.
A player picked in the 15-30 range will usually take a several years to make an impact, if they do end up in the NHL, and that doesn’t necessarily fit Montreal’s ideal window.
Therefore, we can argue that first-round picks do not hold the right type of value for the Canadiens. They need players who can move the needle today, not by 2030, or beyond.
In that vein, don’t be surprised if Montreal’s 2026 first-round pick ends up belonging to another franchise, a situation that may develop as early as the 2026 NHL Trade Deadline.
Joseph Abdulezer asks:
What’s going on with Farrell, Roy and Mesar? Do any of them have a future with the Habs?
I’d argue there’s a chance they can still make an impact with the organization. Roy and Farrell will be restricted free agents this summer, while Mesar will still have a year left on his entry-level contract.
In other words, they’re still controlled assets, which means they can be added as sweeteners to trades, or kept in the organization to continue their development in the AHL.
It’s important to remember that Roy and Farrell have played quite well for the Rocket this season. Farrell has produced 10 goals and 23 assists in 40 games, while Roy has scored nine goals and 10 assists in 26 games. They’re very essential members of one of the best teams in the AHL, but they do have one very big factor working against them in the long run.
The current regime did not draft them.
That doesn’t necessarily mean Kent Hughes and Co. will disregard their value, but we do know that general managers tend to favour players they selected at the NHL Entry Draft, especially when it comes to prospects who are having a hard time taking the next step in their careers.
On the flip side of the coin, seeing as the Habs traded away a pair of first-round picks to acquire Noah Dobson, the stream of young talent heading to the AHL will be reduced to a trickle in upcoming years, and there’s absolutely value in maintaining a winning farm club, not to mention insulating high-end talent with players who can help them develop in a situation that’s conducive to scoring.
As for Mesar, who has scored 4 goals and 10 assists in 40 games with the Rocket, there’s no rush to move on, but it’s become quite clear that an NHL career, at least with the Canadiens, probably isn’t in the cards. At 22 years old, he’s the same age as Roy, and yet he’s struggled to show any semblance of consistency from a production standpoint, a significant red flag for a player who is far from a defensive stalwart.
The Canadiens enjoyed one of the best drafts in recent team history in 2022 by picking Juraj Slafkovsky, Lane Hutson, Owen Beck, Adam Engstrom, and Jared Davidson, among others, but they clearly missed the mark by picking Mesar in the first round.
All things considered, it will still a franchise-defining draft haul.
Ahmad Rahman asks:
How has the price of mangos over the last couple of years affected your day to day?
Those of you who have followed my social media posts know that I’m utterly obsessed with two different fruits: mangoes and clementines.
However, in the last two years, my local grocery story has had a hard time keeping clementines in stock, and their ataulfo mangoes are pitiful. Much like my body, the available mango selection is sad, soft, and almost ready to be thrown in the garbage.
And that’s only when they do have fruit in stock.
I was actually at the grocery story on Thursday afternoon, and when I asked whether they’d be receiving any clementine boxes in the near future, the employee told me he’d inquire on Friday, which gave me a good laugh.
“Okay, but, I won’t be here tomorrow,” I responded, smiling.
“Yeah,” he said, with a blank stare.
Fair enough. We all have those days.
The search goes on.
JMcinthe613 asks:
What (small) stretch of games before the trade deadline might be most telling for the Habs?
In my opinion, the most important stretch has already taken place, when the Canadiens secured 10 of the available 14 points during the holidays.
It was a very difficult stretch of games that included travel, long breaks, and difficult opponents, yet the Canadiens found a way to secure an encouraging number of points.
Statistically speaking, if the Canadiens make the playoffs, which is likely, we will be able to look back at that part of the schedule and suggest it was crucial.
Looking ahead, I’d point to the games following the Olympic break as the most critical stretch. They’ll start by facing the New York Islanders and Washington Capitals at home, before heading for their annual California trip, which has not always been a fruitful voyage for the Canadiens. Once they play the Los Angeles Kings, Anaheim Ducks, and San Jose Sharks, they’ll head back to the Bell Centre to face the Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators.
The Canadiens struggle versus Atlantic Division teams, and they don’t always hit the ground running after an extended break.
Jonathan Biron asks:
When all forwards are healthy, the total is 16!! Knowing we can carry 14, in your eyes, how does this all play out? Maybe it’s beneficial for both sides if Bolduc finishes the season in Laval? Knowing he’s waiver exempt.
I discussed this topic recently, suggesting that a player like Bolduc could end up in the AHL should he fail to make his mark before all the healthy bodies return.
On that note, as we saw on Thursday night, the Canadiens are moving in a different direction. They’d much rather see Bolduc in the NHL than in the AHL. I’m not convinced he fits Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield’s playing style perfectly, but there is no such thing as perfection in professional sports, and Bolduc does provide a significant dose of energy any time he’s on the ice.
Our analyst Roni Hermo also investigated Bolduc‘s lack of production in recent months, coming to the conclusion that he lacked consistency in his usage, while also dealing with a bad bout of shooting luck.
Beyond Bolduc, even though many assume Patrik Laine can no longer help the Canadiens in their bid to qualify for the playoffs, adding a player who does not hesitate to shoot on the powerplay is exactly what the doctor ordered.
And I get the sense the Canadiens are well aware of Laine’s value on the man advantage, especially as they watch their talented young players string together 73 powerplay passes before even considering taking a shot.
Using Laine as a special teams player, so to speak, could be a smart way of limiting the damage at 5v5, while also using his elite shot to improve a key part of their overall game.
Basil asks:
This makes me curious about the 21-year-long siege of Candia. Please share! What happened?
Like hockey, the key in sieges is defensive positioning, and the Knights Hospitaller had great defensive positioning at Candia.
Believe it or not, it wasn’t the longest siege in history. The 33-year-long Siege of Ceuta holds the record.
Can you imagine spending a significant portion of your life under siege from all sides, doing your best to hold out against insurmountable odds?
The residents and defenders must have felt like Carey Price.
Joe asks:
Ok can we get anything for Laine ?
Probably not, though it is a seller’s market, and mediocre players are fetching high prices.
But given his injury history and cap hit, I assume there are very few teams that would show interest today. That may change as the deadline, set for March 6, approaches.
Xndr B asks:
Best trade chip for HuGo right now ?
All draft picks are in play, though that’s far from an exciting answer. I assume you’re referring to which player or prospect would fetch the biggest return.
We can safely say the Habs aren’t in any hurry to trade their best prospects, which includes Michael Hage, Jacob Fowler, and Alexander Zharovsky.
Every other prospect is likely in play.
As for the current NHL roster, I think Josh Anderson has reached the point where he holds some value. He still has one year left on his contract that carries a $5.5 million annual average value, but he’s also on pace to score 20 goals while playing on the third line, and he plays a brand of rough-and-tumble hockey that most general managers adore.
However, if the Canadiens want to acquire a game-changing player who will make an immediate impact, they probably won’t be able to do it with a single asset. It will be a sum of the parts type trade, much like we saw when the Minnesota Wild acquired Quinn Hughes from the Vancouver Canucks.
Do you have a Montreal Canadiens question you’d like to see answered in the next mailbag? If so, drop a reply in the comments below.
