Montreal Canadiens GM confirms they’re looking around
Erik Engels of Sportsnet (mailbag): Montreal Canadienss GM Kent Hughes confirms many options are being considered in their rebuild. One thing is clear. Hughes has a plan and time to implement his plan. The biggest question is when.
Yes, plans are there to pursue talent. Montreal will not mortgage their future for a better shot now. After all, why spend when one does not have to. There are so many options for Montreal to explore and look around.
Again, Montreal has three goalies and must trade one sometime this year. That’s the ongoing thought process. Samuel Montembeault likely gets re-signed sometime soon enough. Jake Allen and Cayden Primeau are potential trade targets.
With Lane Hutson pretty much ready, stay tuned.
Finally, Montreal will have a metric ton of assets to burn. When do they start cashing some of those assets in? Now, that may be when we know Montreal is truly in that Year 1 some have talked about.
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Could The Tage Thompson Injury Mean Patrick Kane?
Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News (mailbag): No one truly knows how long Tage Thompson will be out for. What if week-to-week turns into something much worse? Take the absolute worst-case scenario. Say Thompson was out the entire season, then what?
With the obvious connections, Patrick Kane inevitably pops up in conversations. Buffalo needs a scoring punch and losing Thompson for any extended period would be an almost fatal blow to their playoff hopes.
Now, with Devon Levi potentially being sent to Rochester for a little extra confidence boost, do not be surprised if Buffalo relaxes that contending for a wildcard spot stance. Time will tell.
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Believe that injuries are impacting Buffalo youth far greater than imagined. Even Owen Power has felt the pinch in the early going. Again, Kane is likely not going to Buffalo.
They will try to develop from within for the time being. Ryan Johnson could get a call-up as well. Either way, young teams like the Montreal Canadiens and Buffalo Sabres have a ways to go.