Kent Hughes to trade a forward soon, says Eric Engels

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Jeff Drouin
September 9, 2022 (8:42)

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In a recent podcast of his popular 32 Thoughts, Elliotte Friedman mentioned that the announcement of Kirby Dach's signing was contingent on a trade. In the end, it was Carey Price, who was placed on the long-term injured list, that allowed Hughes to make the deal.

All of this is not to say that a trade is out of the question, however. In his press briefing, Kent Hughes himself mentioned that he could move a salary by the start of the campaign, but not at any price. It seems that the GM will be patient, much like he was in the case of Jeff Petry.

According to what Eric Engels reported on Tony Marinaro's Sick Podcast, a trade is inevitable.

"I think Kent Hughes will have a good opportunity to trade one of the surplus forwards by the time the season starts. He could get future consideration, a late pick or another player who can help in return." - Eric Engels

Hughes' goal would be to free up salary so that early next season he can claim a defenseman on waivers. This isn't the first time this waivers option has come up. Hughes himself opened the door to this possibility during a press briefing.

We must also remember that the CH will have a significant advantage between now and November 1st, when they will have the first say in selecting the players to be picked.

This is a significant advantage when you consider the following points:

1 - The CH has a good success rate with waivers pick up in recent years. Just think of Paul Byron (Marc Bergevin) and Rem Pitlick (Jeff Gorton) who have pleasantly surprised the club's fans.

2 - With the salary cap making things difficult for many teams, it wouldn't be surprising to see some intriguing names placed in the lineup during training camp and the first month of operations. Kent Hughes will be able to fill out his roster for free, courtesy of the NHL, which has not increased its cap.