This text has been updated to incorporate statements from Kent Hughes on Thursday
With less than $2 million available under the salary cap at the opening of the free agent market, the Canadiens were not to be expected to be very busy on Wednesday. This avenue was not intended to be very buoyant for him, and especially not the first day. As a former agent, general manager Kent Hughes is well aware that a team must have the patience to wait two or three days if they hope to make any deals, and maybe that’s always what he intends to do.
Hughes is trying to improve the team in the short term, as rumors surrounding Pierre-Luc Dubois have confirmed. Should the Canadiens ever acquire him – and that’s a big “if” right now – I’m told the trade wouldn’t be conditional on the 24-year-old forward agreeing to an extension first. contract. As a restricted free agent, Dubois is under the control of the Winnipeg Jets for two more seasons, and the comparables already give a good idea of what he might claim under his next contract. There would therefore be no absolute necessity to know what salary is in question before completing a trade.
But that doesn’t change the fact that the Habs would have to make some salary adjustments to integrate Dubois. Until proven otherwise, the CH must at least operate in a ” money in, money out ».
In fact, the Canadian’s immediate concern is making room under the salary cap, and the current market is showing us just how much of a loss-making business dropping contracts is.
Forget goaltender Matt Murray, whose contract was becoming cumbersome due to his poor performance, and for whom the Ottawa Senators had to add draft picks and withhold salary to convince the Toronto Maple Leafs to take him. There are players who changed their address for next to nothing and who, unlike Murray, did not have a negative value.
The Carolina Hurricanes were at the center of two such acquisitions on Wednesday, as they acquired defenseman Brent Burns and Lane Pederson from the San Jose Sharks in return for promising goaltender Eetu Makiniemi, wing Steven Lorentz and a conditional choice of 3e round in 2023. To complete the transaction, the Sharks had to absorb one-third of Burns’ contract, which guarantees him $8 million a year for another three years.
Later in the day, the Vegas Golden Knights sent the last year of Max Pacioretty’s contract as well as Dylan Coghlan in Carolina in return for future considerations, simply to be able to meet the salary cap.
We are talking in the first case of a 37-year-old defender who has slowed down but who can still provide good services, and in the other of a winger who still produces like a star player. The Hurricanes had given themselves salary wiggle room and they cashed in on it to improve, proving that salary cap space is the most coveted currency in today’s environment.
And without forgetting that, a few days earlier, the Tampa Bay Lightning had sent defender Ryan McDonagh to Nashville, who has four years left on a $6.75 million contract. The Predators only had to give Philippe Myers and minor league player Grant Mismash in return.
“At some point, one way or another, we will gain flexibility under the ceiling as there are contracts that end, recalled Hughes Thursday followingnoon. If we can speed up that process, we’ll try to do that, but I think yesterday showed – and I think the whole season showed – that when you have that kind of flexibility… hey, Carolina has picked up two very good hockey players for very little yesterday. We are aware of this. We are also aware, by trying to make transactions, not to end up with players who drag out long-term contracts and who might ensure that we are still in the same situation in two years. »
Yes, Hughes sees the virtues of having space under the salary cap, and the other teams see that too. Given the trades of Burns, Pacioretty and McDonagh, can the Canadian really hope for a meaningful return for Petry?
Teams looking for a right-handed defenseman with an offensive character, those who have unsuccessfully coveted free agent John Klingberg, might certainly show interest in Petry. A lot of teams might find a use for it. But from there to giving up valuable assets and tinkering with him a place under their salary cap? It might not jostle at the gate.
There are two markets that operated in parallel on July 13: that of free agents, where the usual one-upmanship took place for sometimes average players, and that of teams that were looking for a lifeline to get rid of contracts. So on the same day, the Canes got Burns for three years at $5.27 million per year, and the Columbus Blue Jackets hired Erik Gudbranson for four years at $4 million per year. One deal is clearly better than the other; we’ll let you guess which one.
Can the two markets end up intertwining? Could supply and demand distribute bargaining power differently over the next few days? It’s not impossible, and that’s surely what Hughes hopes. But usually, as the days pass, free agents who did not find takers when the market opened often soften their demands. This hardly reconciles with the goal of showcasing Petry by telling other teams “you’ll have to pay more if you want to get him.”
Who knows, Hughes may be able to pull a rabbit out of his hat and generate value for his 34-year-old defender, who reiterated to the Canadian his desire to pursue his career elsewhere. For now, Hughes remains hell-bent on getting assets in return, and he refuses to withhold salary or add a draft pick or prospect in order to make the pill easier to swallow.
“If we trade it, we have to gain flexibility under the ceiling, which is important for us, and that we obtain prospects that would help us be better in the future,” said the GM, describing Petry’s trade as a priority.
If he keeps the hard line, we can not rule out the possibility that the Canadian brings back Petry next season, in which case he would have to find other ways to clean up the payroll and improve the team in the short term.
It would be up to management to determine to what extent not accommodating Petry right away and inviting him to start the next season with the Canadiens represents a viable avenue for the atmosphere of the team, for the player and for his family. This seems less than optimal to us, but there are two factors to keep in mind. First of all, the CH is not in the position where the Golden Knights were with Pacioretty, or the Lightning with McDonagh, that is to say that of absolutely having to part with a player. Keeping Petry would likely limit opportunities to improve in the short term, but the team is under no obligation to trade him. She might start the season with him, hope he shows that he still has all his assets, and wait for a better moment to trade him.
Also, in the event that the Habs didn’t get much value for his services, he would likely weaken his defensive squad in preparation for next season. Good luck, say those who dream of young Bedard, Michkov and Fantilli, but the GM of the Canadian is not one of them for the moment. His blue line is likely to do better with Petry than without him.
The question is how long Kent Hughes will hold his own by refusing to lower his price, and if he has a real chance of getting it if he waits long enough.
(Photo: John Cordes/NHLI via Getty Images)
