Development: Hughes may finally have the opportunity to acquire talented forward Max Comtois for free

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Dan
March 27, 2023 (9:43)

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As my colleague Alex Desrosiers mentioned, and as TVA Sports reporter Renaud Lavoie mentioned, there is a special issue that is getting more and more attention in the NHL.

It concerns the talented Quebec forward, Max Comtois.

As you know, things are not going well in Anaheim this season, and Comtois seems to have been completely abandoned by his bosses.

After a promising start, Comtois has a meager 17 points (8 goals) in 58 games this season.

He has been involved in numerous trade rumors over the past few weeks, but Anaheim decided not to trade him before the deadline.

Yet, he no longer seems to be liked by the team.

According to Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports, the Ducks' general manager is trying to get rid of Max Comtois by any means necessary.

"The Ducks told everyone in the National League that they wanted to trade him, but they played him 13 minutes a game and were asking for a second round pick...come on!" - Renaud Lavoie

According to Renaud, it just goes to show how badly it's being managed in Anaheim:

"It's one of the worst managed teams in the NHL. It's all crooked." - Renaud Lavoie

The TVA Sports reporter also adds that this situation could be resolved as early as this summer, when Comtois' contract finally ends.

"The way he's being treated right now, it looks like we're not going to qualify him. It's extremely strange how we're handling this."

He will obviously be released (so, free as a bird).

Do not expect to see the Ducks qualify the contract of the Quebecer.

A test contract with the Montreal Canadiens for Comtois?

A second-round pick in 2017, Comtois could be an interesting target for Kent Hughes and the Montreal Canadiens, especially since he's obviously going to cost less than $2 million per season.

This could be an intriguing opportunity for the Habs, especially since absolutely no one could have predicted such an outcome when he was the Ducks' top player in 2021 (when he was just 22).

Comtois had also been very solid for Team Canada Junior in 2019. What a turnaround!

He had 7 points in 10 games in his first NHL season, he had been very dominant in his first AHL season, and most importantly, he had been the Anaheim Ducks' top scorer in 2021 (ahead of names like Troy Terry, Ryan Getzlaf and Rickard Rakell).

For a one-season test contract and a salary of $1.5 million, would you sign Max Comtois?

Credit:

Credit: Rumorsandtransaction.com