Canadiens Now Have Flexibility in Terms of Which Goalie Could Be Trade Down the Road
Dave Pagnotta of The Fourth Period was on TSN Radio in Montreal and was asked about what the Canadiens do now with their goaltending that Sam Montembeault is signed.
NHL Rumors: Market Will Determine What Canadiens Do With Their Goalies
** NHLRumors.com Transcription
Host: ” The Canadiens did not hold out any longer for their contract and with Sam Montembeault, that was signed last Friday, $3.1 million per season on a three-year deal. What did you think of the contract Dave? How does it affect the Canadiens three goalies situation if at all?”
Dave Pagnotta: “Well, it affects it in a couple of different ways in terms of giving them a little bit more flexibility and a few more options like this is something that they’ve been talking about for several weeks. Trying to get this done trying to get this locked in. Took a little bit of extra time, which maybe there was just a little back and forth with respect to the dollars but they ultimately get it locked in.
NHL Rumors: Expect More Trades To Come in the NHL
And now the Canadiens have him in place for the next three seasons after this one, which gives them the opportunity to either, see if they’re going to go with him and Cayden Primeau moving forward, or is he a more tradable commodity now that he is locked in and not a potential unrestricted free agent?
So they’ve got a decision to make ultimately, depending on what the levels of interest are, now that he is locked in, and if we decide to hold on to him, Jake Allen seems to be the guy with one more year left on his contract. And the veteran experience. He ‘s got a Stanley Cup under his belt, where he now becomes the more available asset or fluid asset with respect to the trade market and goaltending.
So this just kind of solidifies the crease for the foreseeable future for the Canadians as they continue this you know, rebuild process, but at the same time giving them options on either front, either Allen or Montembeault with respect to the goaltending trade market.”
Host: “Hey, that’s what I want to ask you is a trade more imminent now, now that Sam Montembeault is locked up for the future. I think it’s such a reasonable price that the want to keep them around at that rate. So do you think Jake Allen is on his way out or do you still see the Canadiens going into three goalie system here?”
Pagnotta: “They’ll continue kind of rolling with this tripod of the goaltending system for the for the time being. I don’t get the sense that anything was overly imminent in terms of, or at least wasn’t going into the weekend unless something has changed in the last 36 hours. It seemed like this was something they wanted to just kind of solidify themselves and then just see how things play out a little later on.
Obviously, they would love to only roll with two goaltenders just like most of the other teams out there. This isn’t the ideal situation for anybody that’s currently involved in that but again, with with him locked in with lots of people locked in it now gives the Canadiens that extra flexibility in terms of trying to maximize the value for either him or Jake Allen.
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There’s no, no-trade protection in Montembeault’s contract. Allen has I think of 7 no-trade list so he has a little bit of flexibility, or at least some say in where he doesn’t want to end up with. More likely than not those teams probably aren’t, the contenders that are looking to stabilize their goaltending.
So whether it’s a team that’s looking to do that, like in Edmonton, like in New Jersey, or we see a team down the road that wants to bring in a veteran presence between the pipes, as you know, somebody who’s again, been there before has won, and kind of just provides that strong backup presence for a contending team closer to closer to the deadline and gives the Canadians a little bit more from an option perspective on which route they want to take.”
