dlbalr

Alternatively, get rid of everything after the tweet number (bolded below). https://twitter.com/arponbasu/status/1704513528537768273?s=46&t=C6D_OzldSuuSefel4GDZoQ

This is one of those trades where the trade tree could go on and on for a long time...

Some random thoughts on how some of Montreal's prospects fared in the bits and pieces I got to see: https://www.habsworld.net/2023/09/observations-from-the-2023-rookie-tournament/

That might be a more probable outcome at this stage. Raw skill wise, he could be a top-pairing player if everything came together. But with how much development time he has missed and his general indifference toward defending at times, it's probably not all coming together. That's where Reinbacher's selection filled that last hole on the D for me. He's a 20+ minute all-situations player. Barron I think works in the #4 slot if all goes well. That would allow Mailloux to play 15-17 minutes on a third pairing and be a power play specialist (he and Hutson at the point on the power play units might be something) while being shielded a bit at 5-on-5. I think he can still be that in spite of his limited development and if he's able to be a bit more than that, all the better. But he needs development time. Most d-men aren't NHL-ready coming out of junior and he's no exception.

Today's lines: And for Boston:

The full lists can be found here, for anyone wondering:

They'd have to be up for good. Otherwise, they'd have to be re-waived to be sent down. I'm not opposed to the idea but it's that challenge of having a young seventh defenceman (unless they turned around and sent Barron down to open up a spot on the right side). It's nice to get an extra prospect but if he's hardly going to play, it's hard to develop them.

Their identity is that of a team in transition, a team that isn't good enough to win yet and is focusing on player development to try to get them back into playoff contention over time. Values...not sure what you mean here - this can mean a few different things. Are you talking on-ice, off-ice, community-based, etc? The goal is to maximize player development, particularly skill development. Even if the parts don't completely 'fit' now, just keep developing the skill-set, not focus on pigeonholing to fit specific roles or focus too much on weaknesses. Not saying weaknesses will/should be ignored altogether but it won't be the sole focus of areas to improve. There will come a time (ideally in the near future) when the fit will start to matter and shoring up the weak spots will become more important. That will come when the team is closer to playoff contention (when players are further developed and other divisional rivals are on the downswing) and short-term success becomes a bigger priority. They're not there yet and they know it.

I'll get to a write-up eventually for HW but the Habs have acquired the rights to Jakov Novak from Ottawa for future considerations. He signed an AHL deal with Laval earlier this summer. https://www.prohockeyrumors.com/2023/09/canadiens-acquire-rights-to-jakov-novak-from-senators.html

This seemed to be a scripted talking point early on yesterday. It's their own fault, to an extent, by scheduling the golf tournament (which carries mandatory attendance unless it's for family-related reasons) a week and a half before camp starts instead of the usual day or two before camp. What did they think would happen, they'd fly in for golf, then go back home for a week? Most wouldn't do that. Instead, by making the golf tournament so early, they basically forced most of the players to come in early. That's to take nothing away from the group that has legitimately stayed in Montreal for most of the offseason but between the golf tournament and 'captain's skates', this really wasn't anything noteworthy.

It's not the worst idea but Hughes came out and said that DeSmith wasn't acquired to go play in Laval so I'll take him at his word on that for now. I think they'd carry 3 goalies over embarrassing him by burying him in the minors. What happens with Primeau could also play a role. If he clears, there wouldn't be room for DeSmith in Laval either. The Poulin retirement took an option off the table but there are others like him sitting without a deal right now. J-F Berube and Aaron Dell are on PTOs while Jon Gillies and Michael Hutchinson are unsigned. Any one of those could take a deal to be the veteran backup to Dobes should Primeau and DeSmith both exit without a goalie coming back. I'd love to aim higher in my proposal from a pick perspective - maybe they can push for the 2025 4th - but I have to think that if there was a decent pick on the table for DeSmith, he'd have been moved already.

I have to admit, I'm a bit surprised that DeSmith hasn't been moved yet. Looking around the league, Tampa Bay seems like they might be the best fit for them but they're $73,333 over their LTIR ceiling which makes a move hard to make. I think I've found a workaround: To Tampa Bay: G Casey DeSmith (one year, $1.8M) To Montreal: D Philippe Myers (one year, $1.4M) Small something (2025 fifth-round pick comes to mind; DeSmith's value just isn't that high right now) Myers is projected to be on Tampa's books at $250,000 with him presumed to be in the minors. But if Tampa does this move, waives their projected backup (Jonas Johansson), and waives the corpse of Zach Bogosian, they'd free up exactly $75,000 in space. That would get them in cap compliance and get a much better second-string goalie, all at the cost of a small something since the other two guys aren't all that good anyway. For Montreal, the move frees up $1.55M in cap space now, assuming Myers is waived and buried in Laval. That makes it easier to get to Day One cap compliance with Price on the roster, allowing them to use in-season LTIR. He'd be a decent blueliner for the Rocket while giving them some RD insurance amidst the Wideman injury speculation. It also would allow them to get at least a small positive value return for a piece they probably didn't want to take on in the first place. Not a great return but it checks some boxes for both sides.

It does happen where an NCAA-bound player goes to this camp (I went back through some of the old rosters and found one from 13 years ago) but this is a bit more telling about his plans: That's not saying he's thinking about leaving, that's saying he's left. (Which I don't think is necessarily the right move for him.)

Smilanic coming and basically saying he's turning pro is...well, odd. I'm not sure he cracks Laval's roster right now and the idea of leaving college to go play in the ECHL doesn't make a lot of sense. Also interesting to see Parker-Jones listed as a D as he barely played D last year.

Kevin Poulin has announced his retirement. I thought he might have been the fallback plan if Primeau doesn't make it back to Laval but I guess that's off the table now.