April 17, 2024 | 12:30pm ET
TheFourthPeriod.com
CANADIENS AIM TO ADD OFFENCE IN SUMMER
Arber Xhekaj, defenceman
With their season now complete, the Montreal Canadiens finished the 2023-24 campaign second-last in the Eastern Conference with a 30-36-16 record and 26th in the NHL in goals-for per game.
Canadiens GM Kent Hughes acknowledged his desire to explore the market this off-season for more scoring punch and he is expected to resume his search in the coming weeks after the team decompresses and wraps up its exit interviews and meetings.
The Habs have just over $7.35 million in salary cap space going into the 2024-25 season and can exceed the cap by $10.5 million if they decide to place goalie Carey Price back on LTIR next season.
Forward Tanner Pearson and defenceman Chris Wideman are set to become unrestricted free agents this July and neither are expected to be brought back.
Hughes could explore the free agent market for a veteran offensive forward, but he is more likely to navigate the trade waters and could utilize his surplus of young defencemen as trade bait in hope of acquiring a top-six scoring forward.
The Habs currently have the sixth-best odds in next month’s Draft Lottery, which could move up to fifth-best odds if the Arizona Coyotes pick up at least one point in their final game at Mullett Arena tonight against the Edmonton Oilers before their move to Salt Lake City, Utah.
It is unclear whom the Canadiens may specifically target up front via trade, though Hughes is believed to have laid some groundwork ahead of the trade deadline and could revisit those discussions in the near future. Montreal has been linked to having interest in Anaheim Ducks star Trevor Zegras.
“I guess we’ve been buyers, to a certain degree, at the Drafts and sellers at the trade deadline,” Hughes told the media after the trade deadline last month. “If we see an opportunity again at the Draft, we’ll look to continue that path.”
With Mike Matheson, David Savard, Jordan Harris and Johnathan Kovacevic currently projected on next year's roster, the Habs have a plethora of young defencemen ready, or near ready, to make the full-time jump to the NHL, including Lane Hutson, Logan Mailloux, Justin Barron, Jayden Struble, Arber Xhekaj and last summer's fifth-overall pick David Reinbacher.
The Habs generated interest in both Matheson and Savard ahead of the trade deadline and while Matheson, who had a career year offensively, is not likely to be dealt this summer, it is possible the Canadiens consider moving Savard, who will be in the final year of his contract.
As TFP’s David Pagnotta reported earlier in the season, the Canadiens also received interest in Xhekaj and rejected an offer that included a young NHL forward with top-six potential as they view Xhekaj as a strong asset on their backend.