Development: Kent Hughes and the Canadiens involved in a trade for Patrick Kane?

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MarcO
February 11, 2023 (6:42 PM)

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Especially after his statements yesterday that he is extremely disappointed that the New York Rangers preferred to acquire Vladimir Tarasenko rather than himself, Patrick Kane really seems to be on the verge of being traded by the Chicago Blackhawks.

By the deadline, he will definitely be the most coveted name and could make a huge difference for a team with big-time aspirations.

Remember that he will be free as a bird this summer and that the Hawks will obviously not be making the playoffs this season.

So it seems to be a done deal: Patrick Kane will be traded within three weeks.

But where will he be traded? Why are we talking about Montreal here?

For one simple reason.

Especially if he's not able to trade Sean Monahan and Joel Edmundson (injured), Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes is going to be desperate to find a way to acquire key pieces to help him without his rebuild.

Mostly prospects and draft picks.

As mentioned by many observers, such as Elliotte Friedman, Pierre LeBrun and Frank Seravalli, the CH will be on the lookout in the coming weeks for a specific type of trade.

The third team to pick up a portion of a player's salary in a trade, in exchange for a draft pick or picks.

It's been happening more and more over the past few seasons, and the CH could absolutely benefit from it. See an example involving Patrick Kane:

To Chicago: 1st round pick, prospect, other element.

To Dallas: Patrick Kane (At 50% of his salary)

To Montreal: 50% of Kane's salary + a solid draft pick or prospect.

This is also well explained here:

A file to follow and a possibility to keep in mind. The Montreal Canadiens could really be involved in a major three-team trade, but only to write off part of a salary, in return for an interesting compensation.

It was also discussed, as a possibility for the Habs, in a Insider Trading capsule, from TSN, earlier this week.