Hockey

“Much Easier to Acquire in the Offseason”: Canadiens Expected to Address Center Depth This Summer

Published: Mar 12, 2025, 12:00 PM
1 min read
Updated: Jul 24, 2025, 11:07 AM
Fact checked by:
Sergey Demidov
The Canadiens avoided deadline chaos but are set to be aggressive this summer

The Canadiens avoided deadline chaos but are set to be aggressive this summer (Photo by Derek Cain/Getty Images)

The Montreal Canadiens stood pat at the deadline, but it certainly wasn’t for lack of trying. The rebuilding club defied all odds to come within one point of a playoff spot on March 7 – The NHL Trade Deadline.

However, as NHL sources have indicated to RG, the buyer’s market was simply too rich for any serious GM to throw themselves into.

“There were healthy scratches going for 3rd-round picks and borderline NHL players being traded for mid-round picks,” said one NHL source. “There wasn’t much to do in terms of improving the team to get them to the playoffs. This young core got them there, and they should be the ones to get them over the hump. Wasting futures just to maybe make the playoffs and face the best team in the East is fun on paper, until you get swept.”

Ultimately, the Canadiens aren’t in an ideal situation from a roster perspective. On the one end, they relied on young Owen Beck to fill the roster spot left open by the injury to Kirby Dach, and on the other, Kaiden Guhle is also not expected back.

That currently leaves the Canadiens with 20 healthy players at the moment, as Patrik Laine continues to be hampered by a virus. That’s a recipe for disaster.

But it’s mostly because the Canadiens do not want to weaken the momentum of their farm team in Laval, who are currently the top team in the North Division right now and poised for a playoff berth this spring.

By refusing to pay the ridiculous prices at deadline, and cautious about who they recall, the Canadiens have effectively played the gauntlet on their group of young leaders in Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield and Lane Hutson to will the club to the Spring Dance.

“It’s going to be tough for them to pull ahead of Ottawa, but they still have a shot at passing Detroit or New York at this rate,” said another NHL source regarding what he’s seen of the Canadiens. “It’s just going to be a very difficult ask for someone like Nick Suzuki, who will again be playing some major hockey down the stretch.”

No matter what happens, sources close to the Canadiens believe that this push for the playoffs, no matter how it plays out, will be educational for the core. Either it will provide them with excellent experience in the form of a playoff berth, or they’ll fall short and know exactly what is needed for the club to reach the next level for the 2025-26 season.

Active In The Summer

The Canadiens were looking to shore up their depth down the middle going into the Trade Deadline. There was one problem with that: so was half the league.

“Almost every single potential playoff team in the NHL was looking for help down the middle, and there were very few options available,” said an NHL source. “You saw the prices paid for Nelson, Laughton, and the other centers to go shortly before the deadline? Those are very steep prices because there’s a higher sense of desperation during this time of the year.”

That urgency, however, was not something Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes was willing to buy into. While the team explored potential moves to bolster their roster, they were unwilling to part with the draft capital and prospects necessary to make a splash. Given the team's long-term vision, making a move for a short-term rental never aligned with their philosophy.

“The Trade Deadline is not the time to build a club, it’s an arms race,” said a source close to the Canadiens.

“They tried to find what they could, but there were so few sellers in this market that prices were sky-high. I fully expect the club to be aggressive this summer with all the draft capital and prospects they’ve accumulated.”

That sentiment was echoed by multiple scouts and league executives, who expect Montreal to be active when the offseason rolls around. Hughes has already built a reputation for making calculated trades in the summer, rather than overpaying during the frenzy of the deadline.

“I'd be shocked if the Canadiens didn’t trade for an age-appropriate center this summer, especially with a young phenom like Ivan Demidov landing in Montreal next season,” said a pro scout. “From what I’m hearing, the Canadiens feel like that’s the missing piece to get them to the playoffs. Much easier to acquire a top-6 center with term in the offseason than in February or March, especially when you’re mostly offering futures.”

This summer will be a crucial one for Montreal. With their young core taking major strides and another blue-chip prospect on the way, management is keenly aware that their competitive window is about to open. Whether it’s through a trade or free agency, the Canadiens are expected to be in the mix for a significant addition down the middle—one that could push them from a fringe playoff team to a legitimate contender in the Eastern Conference.

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Senior News Editor
Marco D’Amico is an accredited hockey reporter covering the Montreal Canadiens, with a strong focus on NHL prospects, the NHL Draft, and player development. His work has appeared on TSN, RDS, CBC, and more, and he’s interviewed top talents like Lane Hutson, Shane Wright, Ivan Demidov, Logan Cooley, and Nathan MacKinnon.
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James Murphy
James Murphy
NHL Reporter

James Murphy is a veteran sports journalist covering the NHL, NCAA and CHL hockey for RG.

With 25 years of experience covering the Bruins, the NHL, NCAA, CHL and more, Murphy has seen it all when it comes to hockey. His hockey black book is filled with Hall of Famers, current players, coaches, management, scouts and a diverse array of hockey media personalities who have lived and worked in and around the game. Murphy also currently co-hosts The Eye Test podcast with Pierre McGuire and, along with McGuire, interviews NHL owners and executives, as well as NHL and NCAA head coaches and players daily.

The Arlington, Massachusetts, native began his writing career in hockey in 2001, when the Boston Bruins raised one of his childhood idols, Ray Bourque’s No. 77, to the rafters before their 2001–02 season opener. For 22 of his 25 years as a hockey reporter, Murphy covered the Bruins daily, including their victorious 2011 Stanley Cup run and their runs to the 2013 and 2019 Finals, multiple NHL drafts and countless Stanley Cup playoffs. He did all that for the Boston Metro, NHL.com, NESN.com and ESPN Boston.

In addition to his print work covering the Bruins, Murphy also made regular TV appearances on NESN, Fox 25 Boston, ESPN and NHL Network. From 2008 to 2012, Murphy hosted The Hockey Primetime Show on SiriusXM NHL Network Radio and made numerous appearances on national and international radio shows.

Ironically, his three years not covering the Bruins were spent covering their archrivals, the Montreal Canadiens. From 2012 to 2015, Murphy was based in Montreal and covered the Canadiens for NHL.com and TSN.ca. He also appeared regularly on TSN 690 radio and CTV.

Murphy returned to Boston in 2015 and left the media business to work in sales and marketing for LiveBarn, a Montreal-based sports streaming company, for four years. In 2019, Murphy once again became a Bruins beat reporter, this time writing for Boston Hockey Now. He spent four seasons working for BHN before arriving at RG in 2024 and also dedicated more time to The Eye Test podcast.

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