3 Canadiens Trade Targets Named As Good Fits

We look at three trade targets that would fill Montreal's needs on their continued road back to contention this summer

If you look at The Athletic's prospect pool rankings, the Montreal Canadiens are listed at #3 in the NHL. That gives them plenty of ammunition with which to make a trade to add a solid piece or two to their roster this summer.

Arpon Basu writes that GM Kent Hughes should be targeting teams at the bottom of the prospect rankings list, like the Boston Bruins (ranked #30) and the New York Islanders (#25). With that, he goes on to suggest three trade targets that would fill Montreal's needs as they look to add the next pieces on their ascending road back to contention.

Bo Horvat, New York Islanders

"It would be difficult to find a better fit for the Canadiens’ second line right now than the (Islanders') consistent 50-to-60-point scorer," writes Basu. At 30, is he a little old for the young Canadiens and their timeline for true contention? Perhaps, but he's averaged 33 goals and 65 points over the past three seasons (though declining each year), and has been a strong producer on the power play as well.

The biggest sticking point here (in addition to his age) is the fact that Horvat has six years remaining with an $8.5 million cap hit. If he has to transition to a third-line role in the years to come due to declining production, that contract won't look very good—even with the rising cap.

Is Horvat a fit for Canadiens at second-line center?

It would be a risk for the Habs to take, but there are absolutely no good, young options on the UFA market for them to take a run at in the search for a 2C.

Pavel Zacha, Boston Bruins

With two years left on his deal at a $4.75 million AAV, Zacha, 28, might be falling out of favor in Boston, as his production slipped this past season to 47 points after being in the high 50s the previous two years. But Basu feels that "there is no team that should be more desperate to add futures than the Boston Bruins...

"If Zacha can bring in a decent draft pick and a prospect with two years left on his contract, that would make a lot of sense for the Bruins to at least consider, even if it would mean dealing with the hated Canadiens."

As for Montreal's needs for a second-line center, Zacha doesn't quite fit that billing, "but they could do far worse."

Noah Dobson, NY Islanders

Moving to the blueline, and back to Long Island, Basu calls Dobson a player to watch. It's unlikely that a new Islanders' GM would want to let Dobson go, but with no attachments and looking for a clean slate, who knows?

"The acquisition cost here would be astronomical and would not be limited to futures," offers up Basu, "but if he’s available in a trade, Dobson would be a phenomenal addition to the Canadiens’ core as a top-pair right-shot defenceman."

Some bold suggestions here, but the Canadiens need to leave no stone unturned as they head into the next phase of their rebuild, which is to take that step to turn into solid playoff contenders.

We recently had a broader look at 10 trade candidates for the Habs to fill that second-line center role.