Hughes Turned Down A Generous Offer For Armia

The Montreal Canadiens didn’t trade anyone at the deadline, and some believed that if GM Kent Hughes didn’t move, it was because nobody was willing to pay the price he had set for his assets, even though he stated he had decided to keep the team together as requested by captain Nick Suzuki.

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However, in his post-deadline article, Sportsnet insider Eric Engels stated the Canadiens could have had a second-round pick for Finnish right winger Joel Armia. Whichever way you look at it, it’s hard to believe Hughes could have set a price higher than that for him.

While Armia is a very good penalty killer, he remains a forward that has never scored over 30 points in a season in the NHL, and that was several years ago, all the way back to 2019-20. So far this season, he has 11 goals and 14 assists for 25 points, which ties his production from the 2023-24 campaign, which he attained in 66 games.

He may be on target for a career-high 33 points, but that’s assuming he can maintain his production until the end of the season, and he’s not a picture of consistency. A second-round pick for a player who cleared waivers just last season appears to be more than a fair offer, but it wasn’t worth more for the GM than showing his core that he believes in them.

Besides, the Canadiens already have two second-round picks in the subsequent two drafts and 12 picks in 2025, nine in 2026, and seven in 2027, which is more than enough. I know draft picks can be used in trades, but there comes a time when you seek established players when draft picks aren’t enough, and your trading partners want roster players or prospects near ready to play in the NHL.

It's obvious that the Canadiens are in need of a second line center, and if history has taught us one thing, it’s that draft picks will bring you players with good potential, but that have so far failed to meet expectations. If we are realistic, this is what Kirby Dach and Alex Newhook are. Players with a high pedigree, but that didn’t live up to the hype in their original market, and, we have to admit, in Montreal so far. They are not busts, but they don’t appear to be players who will be able to play a pivotal role on a contending Canadiens’ team.

The Canadiens enjoyed a day off on Sunday but will be back on the ice for practice at 1 PM PDT on Monday. Then on Tuesday and Wednesday, they'll be playing a back-to-back against the Vancouver Canucks and the Seattle Kraken. With only 19 games to go, we'll soon know if Hughes was right to give a vote of confidence to his players, their first post-deadline game wasn't exactly convincing, especially the first frame in which they could only muster four shots.

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