- Craig Custance of ESPN: Offseason focus for Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin.1. Re-sign Jeff Petry: there will be a lot of interest in Petry if he hits the open market, and someone would be able to offer more than the Canadiens. The Canadiens need to convince him to take a little less and remain with the team.
2. Sign Alex Galchenyuk to a contract extension: the most economical way to manage the Canadiens salary cap would be to sign Galchenyuk to a bridge deal. Signing him to a long-term deal now could save them some money down the road though.
3. Send a feeler Mike Babcock’s way: may not be fair for Michel Therrien, but there are some who think that the Canadiens could be on a short list of dream jobs for Babcock.
- Matt Larkin of The Hockey News: Larkin thinks the Canadiens should target Maple Leafs winger Phil Kessel. The Leafs could retain some of Kessel’s $8 million salary. Why would it make sense for the Canadiens?
It’s most logical from a pure hockey standpoint. Kessel does one thing extremely well, and that one thing happens to be what Montreal needs most. The Habs’ 2.61 goals per game ranked 20th in the NHL, the lowest of any team to make the playoffs. They had four 20-goal scorers and three 60-point scorers. That isn’t horrible, but it doesn’t meet the standard of major Stanley Cup contenders…
The Canadiens need more goal scorers to complement Max Pacioretty.
Return for Kessel? Using the Rick Nash trade as a comparable as he was of similar age had a similar contract (Kessel 6-years at $8 million and Nash have six at $7.8 million). If it were me would start by asking for Jacob De La Rose, Zach Fucale and a 2015 1st round pick. The Leafs may start of higher and ask for Galchenyuk and a 1st. These returns may not fit cap wise for the Canadiens, but it may be easier to do if the Leafs took back P.A. Parenteau and his $4 million cap hit. Kessel does have a no-trade clause where he lists eight teams he’d go to. If Kessel would cost too much, the Canadiens could always call the Blackhawks and ask about Patrick Sharp.
- Habs Links: Bob McKenzie on TSN 690 radio yesterday on the Canadiens window closing: “It’s not closing… let’s just calm down for a little bit here.” … “Maybe (Bergevin) has to accelerate things a little bit… but you’re not in a VanCanucks the window is closing hysteria just yet” … “As well as the #Canadiens played, they were tempting fate all year.” … “I don’t anticipate a coaching change in MTL, but there have to be some hard questions asked about the style that they play” …
- Habs Links: McKenzie on Jeff Petry: “A lot of teams saw how well he played for the #Canadiens. He’s still relatively young & he’s going to get paid” … On re-signing Petry: “The’ve already invested lots of $ in players that maybe they’re not getting mileage out of that they want”
- Allan Muir of SI: For the Canadiens to take the next step, they need to add a top line center and could use at least two top-six wingers that can score. Can’t really expect them to fill all three, but it will be interesting to see how they can upgrade. Michel Therrien’s future with team will need to be watched, and there will be speculation regarding Mike Babcock.