Canadiens could get some LTIR space
Eric Engels of Sportsnet: Montreal Canadiens forward Brendan Gallagher fractured his right thumb and is out indefinitely. It’s possible that he won’t be able to return until the playoffs. It’s also possible that the Canadiens could put him and his $3.75 million cap hit on the LTIR if he’s out for the rest of the regular season. This would give the Canadiens some extra room at that trade deadline to add.
The Canadiens like their team but they do have 21 games left in 34 days. Cap flexibility and added depth may come in handy.
Maple Leafs GM on the trade deadline
Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic: The Toronto Maple Leafs are on a bit a roll. There is lots of talk about them adding before the trade deadline, but does GM Kyle Dubas really need to make some moves?
Talk has them possibly needing a second-line winger and/or a goaltender due to health concerns of Frederik Andersen and Jack Campbell.
Alex Galchenyuk has played well on the second line with John Tavares and William Nylander and lessened the urgency to add a winger according to Dubas.
“But with all that said, if we can do something that we think is going to be a good fit in the locker room and on the ice, I think we would still very openly explore that.’’
LeBrun thinks they could use a top-nine winger that can play up or down the lineup. Nick Foligno and Kyle Palmieri fit that bill, with Scott Laughton a cheaper version.
Dubas adds that he doesn’t think Andersen’s injury is long-term and isn’t as concerned as others are.
They are okay with the depth on the blue line, but they will see what is available.
“We feel confident in our depth there,’’ Dubas said. “That said, we’ll see how the market shakes out on D. If there is an opportunity to upgrade, if you look at the teams that go far, they tend to go through a lot of D.
“We’ve really only used our six so far and not really test it, but even in training camp it was an area we felt really good about.’’