Trade market: 3 new first round picks with the Canadiens in the next few months?

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Jeff Drouin
October 30, 2022 (5:18 PM)

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Since his arrival as general manager of the Habs last January, Kent Hughes has made a number of personnel moves that have brought in his share of draft picks.

One can think of the transactions involving Tyler Toffoli and Ben Chiarot that allowed the Habs to get their hands on first round picks. As Keven Mawn of Fanadiens.com reports, it's quite possible Hughes will do it again in 2022-2023.

According to Eric Engels and Jeff Marek, the Habs could be looking at as many as three first round picks between now and the trade deadline. Wow!

First, Engels mentions that Sean Monahan's excellent start to the season could give the Habs a first round pick in a trade involving a Stanley Cup contender.

Well, it's still early in the season, but still... If #91 continues his hot streak, he will have been a real steal from Kent Hughes if he could ever get such a high draft pick in return for his services. It should be remembered that Monahan was acquired from the Flames last August (along with a first round pick) in return for future considerations.

For his part, Jeff Marek mentioned that it could cost a first-round pick to the teams that want to acquire a second pair defenseman at the trade deadline. A profile that looks suspiciously like two of the Habs' backs, Joel Edmundson and Michael Matheson.

However, since both veterans are currently injured, we will also have to wait and see.

Based on the trade deadline last March, Hughes was able to get maximum value for Artturi Lehkonen and Brett Kulak. Should the Habs find themselves in a similar situation to last year, it's a safe bet that they will do everything in their power to get the big bucks in return for Monahan, Matheson and Edmundson, and possibly players like Mike Hoffman and Evgeny Dadonov as well, if other teams are struggling with injuries to their forwards.