As the clock wound down to the NHL Holiday Trade Freeze, the Montreal Canadiens went and filled a need on their defense corps with the acquisition of Alexandre Carrier from the Nashville Predators. They moved Justin Barron to do it, but grabbed a blueliner who head coach Martin St. Louis says can play against other team’s top lines.
The Canadiens needed defense on the right side, especially in their top four, after trading Jonathan Kovacevic to the New Jersey Devils in the summer. Marc D’Amico of RG Media reported the Canadiens were still out there looking for the “right” fit.
The trade needed to make sense, and adding a veteran to the group was a logical move. Vice President of Hockey Operations Jeff Gorton and GM Kent Hughes’ management team pursued their target with purpose.
On Thursday, Gorton addressed the media, highlighting the importance of bringing in the right player and the value of adding veteran leadership to the room.
“I think for a while we’ve been looking for some more veteran presence on our team, somebody on the right side that can help some of our young D. We have a lot of young D, so for us, with the fit of finding somebody at Alex’s age, with his experience, the type of character, the way he plays, we feel like it really fits into the way we want to play. We just felt like our team needed some more veteran presence as we move forward.
This Trade Puts Defensemen in the Proper Spots
The Canadiens have a lot of left-shot defensemen who are asked to play on the right side. And while it is hard enough to play in the NHL as a young player, to be asked to play your opposite side is not a recipe for success. Adding Carrier to the mix helps ease the pressure for players like Kaiden Ghule, Lane Hutson, Arber Xhekaj, and Jayden Struble.
I think you can see it a lot with our team, right? There are a lot of nights we have six left-handed defencemen, and it’s difficult, right, especially for young guys breaking in the league, so we’re asking a lot of them to switch over and be able to play both. And when you’re learning the position and you’re trying to play in the best league in the world, and you’re jumping the other side, sometimes we’re asking maybe some too much. So to find somebody on the right side with the experience that Alex has is exciting. I think it’ll help our young guys that we have now.
As Gorton added, the Canadiens have had their eye on Alexandre Carrier for a while.
Alex is a player we’ve liked for a long time. We’ve know about the character and what he brings off the ice as a person, and combine that with the way he plays, like I said, his skill set, I think really works well with the way Marty wants to play.
The Canadiens have Carrier under control for the next three seasons at $3.75 million a season. It begs the question of what comes next for Montreal.
Montreal Canadiens Could Still Make Additional Moves
The Montreal Canadiens may not be done, either. As NHLTradeTalk.com has documented, the club has players other teams will want. With names like David Savard, Christian Dvorak, Jake Evans, and Mike Matheson out in trade circles, Montreal will be looking for assets they potentially can flip for summer additions, too.
Savard, Evans, and Matheson are garnering the most. Savard and Evans are unrestricted free agents, while Matheson has a year left on his deal at $4.875 million. So once the holiday freeze is over and the NHL heads toward the Trade Deadline, speculation around what the Canadiens will do will heat up.
Inevtiavtely the Canadiens will move on from Savard, especially if a team comes with the right price. Remember, Savard is one of the top four defensemen who won the Stanley Cup. Some teams will want to add a player of his caliber.
Next: Maple Leafs Poised to Pursue Distinct Top-6 Forward
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