Minnesota declines easily. Monahan to Minnesota will never happen. Our gm doesn't like him. A player you got a 1st to take on isn't going to be traded to a Minnesota team who needs a 1c for 2nd round pick or anything .

Toronto won't make that trade. I know a lot of talk has been made about how the leafs desperately want to get rid of him, but for now there is no better option. Moving him doesn't give them enough space to sign Sandin, and without Holl or Sandin, the right side looks very weak.

Big issue im having is Monahan hasnt played at a .5ppg in a while and even if he does that doesnt get you a prospect + 2nd. Maybe a 3rd ? Anderson hasnt been great either. in his last 121gp he has 56p... .46ppg. explain why a team would give up a 1st + 2 prospects for such a lackluster player? I'd argue Anderson is one more average season away from being a cap dump / negative contract based off production / $$

@justaboss thanks for posting this. I love seeing other fans take time and effort into a Habs trade thread. I dont agree with all your takes but I enjoyed taking a study break and reading through your thoughts. All in all, I wouldn't be disappointed if this is how the year went down though I would hope Dadanov, Monahan and Drouin have big years and can fetch stronger returns.

What in the holy hell is that Devils trade? Devils wouldn't take Anderson for free.

Also it came out last night that the Devils plan to be sellers at the deadline this year

A bad one. On purpose. Which is explicitly said in the trade description.

I wouldn't pay anything for Anderson either as a Stars fan. But the market does seem to suggest he has value, which was the exact same case with Chiarot, who is dogsh*t.

it came out last night that they plan to be sellers? pretty sure a lot can change between now and the deadline lol. That being said, Anderson is most likely not being dealt and wont bring that much in a package if he is.

I think a potentially low 2nd and an iffy prospect isn't too much to consider for a 25-30 point guy at the deadline, especially with the past he has had before his injuries. It's all about gaining depth in the end, because Wild's center pool is meh to be fair.

Anderson trade is a wild punt at the market getting crazy again. There's no rational explanation why should he return so much, but hey that was case with Chiarot as well. Maybe NJ thinks they need to add something they don't have, and they end up overpaying for it because they're returning to a competing state? I dunno.

I dunno about desperate, but the fact is they're over the cap even without re-signing Sandin, so someone needs to go. Holl is the most likely option in my opinion given the amount of D-men they already have.

The most likely trade will be Kerfoot. He has more value, is owed less money, and clears more cap space for them.

Yea trading those upcoming UFAs at TDL is definite possibility though the return is unknown due to their quality of play at the time of the trade.
Josh Anderson at 5.5m X 5 years....or even four years at TDL is a cap dump. Just untradable.

But by the same token he also has more cap, and with the market having an extreme importance towards cap space if might cost them more.

I think they have harder time filling the hole moving Kerfoot creates given that he is better player of the two.

Take out the 1st and Devils probably still say no. Habs would probably have to retain a bit to cut it down to $3.5-4 million AAV.

Where did you see this? not doubting just havent seen as a devils fan

Kerfoot leaving could be filled in several ways. On the second line they have Malgin, Robertson, and later in the season Knies that can slot in there. Then by moving Kerfoot they can sign both Sandin and possibly Aston-Reese, who can be used to fill Kerfoot's role on the PK.

Since he's owed $700k for the entire year, a team like Arizona or Buffalo would most likely take him, and then flip him for assets at the deadline.

Those are still really iffy replacement candidates. Malgin's already been an outcast in NHL and Robertson is still very much unproven.

The possibility is slim, but right now I wouldn't call those two capable replacements for a 50 point forward.

Overall, I agree with a lot of this. Good job! Yeah sure every single fan on here is going to say no, because that's what they do but the truth is you looked at it from the actual current GM's perspective, which should be the point. Everyone is entitled to their personal opinion but at the end of the day, they're opinion is not what will make a trade happen or not.

Just for the trades, I think the Toronto one probably doesn't happen. I think there will be enough interest in Kerfoot to make that happen eventually and should be enough to get them compliant. Leafs fans may be disappointed in the return however. Teams have little need to pay a premium right now and the Leafs are the ones desperate. The Dadanov/Monahan/Drouin deals all seem fair to me. Their values will go up or down based on their play this year so it really depends solely on that so its really just a baseline guess that they all have average seasons, 30-40 point ranges. The Anderson one is tougher to predict and especially to who but I'll say this, I do think a 1st rounder makes sense but I think you can remove the other assets in the deal and replace with a cap dump to offset some cap, maybe like a Tatar or something. Habs fans may not like that and non Habs fans may not think he's worth it regardless but as you said, actual GM's do value him and if the need arises for a very specific need that Anderson brings, it can definitely happen. There will be teams interested in him no matter the analytics, ppl need to realize that even if you don't agree with it. Maybe NJ, maybe not but someone will be and that's not just wishful thinking.

Calgary just paid a 1st to get rid of Monahan, you're not getting close to that value at the deadline, even with 50% retained

The Devils would be wiser to spend those assets on good hockey players.

No kidding

Brattpack Twitter space with Julie Robenhymer and Ryan Novozinsky. Julie said that Fitz isn't expecting a playoff team and would rather sell assets than lose in the first round. Mentioned that he's not planning on shopping players, but won't hesitate to trade UFAs if he gets calls about them.

Fitz putting that out there will truly test the hockey gods....now the Devils will find themselves 2-3pts out at the deadline but playing well, which I think is the worst case for Fitz where that would be the hardest to make any moves....unless he's blown away by a trade but I feel the prices would already be high.

My main belief this year is there would be a massive difference between 7th in the East and 11th. Last year was over by December, you know who was making the playoffs, but this year I feel the top and mushy middle will be a lot closer.

I think that's exactly the situation we'll be in if the goaltending holds up. If I'm Fitz and I'm getting calls on Severson and Graves, they'll be shipped to the highest bidder without a second thought. I'd much rather miss the playoffs but have picks 16 and 25, for example, than make the playoffs, get eliminated early, and only have pick 20. This is not our year.

Why does MTL get Holl for free but Canucks have to pay for him?

Cap space and timing. Right now teams need to get compliant, at the deadline however, teams take into account (injuries/trades/standings/surprises) as they are looking to either improve for a playoff run, or free up cap and acquire draft picks/prospects.