The Montreal Canadiens are falling out of the Eastern Conference playoff race. With 57 points in 57 games, the trade deadline could be the time when they sell off their pieces and set up a pivotal offseason. Jake Evans has been the most-talked-about piece on the Canadiens roster, whether he is a trade piece or will sign an extension. Marco D’Amico of Responsible Gaming reported that the Evans decision is coming soon.
“If — and I don’t think he will be — he’s not signed by the Habs by the end of this weekend, he’s a goner,” a source told D’Amico.
Evans has 11 goals and 16 assists in 57 games this year and has a $1.7 million cap hit. He is a solid bottom-six player and, at only 28 years old, has room to grow. The Canadiens won’t get a first-round pick back for Evans but even a mid-round pick can help next year.
Evans’ value has never been higher, as he is two points away from tying his career high. As the team looks to finally return to the playoffs, Evans could be valuable. But losing players for free is not the right way to build a team for the future. What should the Canadiens do at the trade deadline?
The Canadiens must sell at the trade deadline
Evans is not the only pending free agent on the Canadiens. Center Christian Dvorak, right-wing Joel Armia, and defenseman David Savard could all be traded. None of those players will yield a first-round pick, but combining two of those players and shipping them off to the Western Conference could accomplish that goal.
Whether or not the Canadiens trade Evans should come down to the low number of sellers on the market. The Eastern Conference wild card race is very tight and the Western Conference is deep. So trading all of their pieces to set up for a big offseason would be wise.
The upcoming NHL salary cap boom won’t help the Canadiens too much because of the extension they gave Juraj Slavkovsky. He is getting a $6.65 million pay raise as the cap rises by $7.5 million. So freeing up the salary from those four players could set them up to land a big fish in free agency.
The Canadiens could amass multiple draft picks and maybe a strong prospect back by trading Evans and their other free agents. While they are all strong players who could help the Habs, they need more picks and more money to spend.
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