Trade rumors : Jonathan Huberdeau's linked with Habs according to TSN?
The Hometown forward of the Calgary Flames, Jonathan Huberdeau, has had a tough time since leaving Florida, but now TSN is mentioning a trade rumor between Kent Hughes and his counterpart at the Flames to help the team in its rebuilding phase.
The Canadiens have become a favored destination for rumors involving Québécois players with unfavorable contracts. First, Pierre-Luc Dubois, and now Jonathan Huberdeau.
Simon Tsalikis, one of the co-hosts of TSN 690's morning show, just proposed the following:
According to the main interested party, the Canadiens could take advantage of the opportunity to also offload some bad contracts. Why would General Manager Craig Conroy want to swap a bad contract for another bad one?
He even mentions the possibility of getting rid of the team's two worst contracts in Brendan Gallagher and Josh Anderson to obtain the services of Jonathan Huberdeau.
According to him, the relationship between Craig Conroy and Kent Hughes is solid, but why would this transaction be beneficial for their organizations? The answer is still elusive...
Once again, it comes down to the same principle of exchanging two 3-year problems for one 7-year problem.
In CALGARY: Josh Anderson + Brendan Gallagher"
That's TSN's suggestion. Would you do it?
We're talking about a seven-year contract with an average salary of $10.5 million per season. Not sure if Kent Hughes would be keen on the idea! It's obvious that Brendan Gallagher ($6.5 million until 2026-2027) and Josh Anderson ($5.5 million until 2026-2027) would allow Kent Hughes to save $1.5 million on the salary cap, but the duration could become problematic!
Jonathan Huberdeau's no-movement clause could complicate matters. Will the former Florida Panthers star be willing to waive his clause to come to Montreal? It's unknown...
An internet user made an interesting point about how duration is also the window for the Canadiens to build a competitive franchise that can vie for top honors!
It's a bit like the rumor that sent Gallagher and Anderson to Los Angeles for Pierre-Luc Dubois. The two cases are similar... And in both cases, it would have the effect of scrapping the reconstruction we've seen in Montreal for the past two years." - Marc-Olivier Cook, who deserves all the credit for the topic
It's a safe bet that Kent Hughes and Jeff Gorton would prefer to pass on this one.
At 30 years old, Jonathan Huberdeau has scored 52 points in 81 games this season, with only 12 goals.
Since arriving in Calgary, his offensive production hasn't been anywhere near his famous 2021-22 season with the Florida Panthers, where he amassed an impressive 115 points.
Credit: DansLesCoulisses - link
