Blue Jackets trade Patrik Laine to the Montreal Canadiens // AP Photo
The Montreal Canadiens were ultimately able to weaponize their cap space this summer, completing a blockbuster trade with the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Montreal surprised the hockey world by acquiring Patrik Laine and a 2026 2nd-round pick in exchange for Jordan Harris.
The Canadiens made this deal work because they were able to absorb all of Laine’s $8.7M cap hit without forcing the Blue Jackets to retain his salary.
In sending Harris and his $1.4M cap hit to Columbus, the Canadiens took on a net total of $7.3M in total cap space.
The issue here is that the Canadiens only had about $5.45M in salary cap space before the trade, meaning they’re about $1.85M over the cap.
So will they put Carey Price on Long-Term Injury Reserve to make it work?
Yes, but not right away.
Timing is Key
The Montreal Canadiens have been adamant that they will not consider putting Carey Price on LTIR during the offseason, as it limits what they can do with the cap space.
In the past, the Canadiens were forced to put Price’s contract on LTIR prior to the start of the season, which didn’t allow them to leverage the full capacity of his LTIR relief space.
By putting Carey Price on LTIR after the start of the NHL season, the Canadiens would be able to leverage the full benefit of the $10.5M relief space.
As of right now, the Canadiens are $1.85M over the salary cap to start the season, and they have a 23-man roster.
Thankfully for the Canadiens, they can surpass the salary cap by 10% during the offseason, but they’ll have to make a move before the start of the season to make things work.
But it doesn’t have to be a trade.
Playing The Game
The Montreal Canadiens have a few options.
They could make a trade.
They could have an injury before the start of the season that could help them delay the inevitable, like Christian Dvorak in 2023.
Or they can play musical chairs with their roster to start the year.
According to RG.org sources close to the situation, it’s looking like option 3 will be the best option for the moment, as it will require the least effort from the team outside of their capologist.
According to the NHL's Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), the Canadiens traditionally start with a 23-man roster but could reduce it to as low as 20 players to open the season.
There is also the injured Raphaël Harvey-Pinard who will be injured until mid-November and likely to start the year on LTIR; giving the Canadiens $1.1M in relief.
By placing Harvey-Pinard on LTIR and sending down youngsters like Jayden Struble and Joshua Roy to the Laval Rocket of the AHL to start the season, the Canadiens would become cap-compliant with a 20-man roster.
Once the first day of the season has passed, the Canadiens would only then be able to put Carey Price on LTIR and could recall necessary reinforcements from Laval to fill out their roster to 23 men while being able to use Carey Price’s full $10.5M relief space.
The Canadiens would then have just under $10M in LTIR space to work with throughout the season. Unfortunately for them however, that space does not accrue like regular cap space and will likely result in performance overage bonuses.
Marco D'Amico is a beat reporter covering the Montreal Canadiens and the NHL Draft, while also being a recurring guest on TSN690 and BPM Sports. His work primarily on NHL CBA breakdowns and prospect analysis, all while covering the Montreal Canadiens on a day-to-day basis.
