The Montreal Canadiens have made it official: They have acquired forward Patrik Laine from the Columbus Blue Jackets and a 2026 2nd-round pick for Jordan Harris. There was no salary retention as part of the trade, as the Canadiens will take on Laine’s full cap hit of $8.7 million over the next two seasons.
Patrik Laine Heads to Montreal
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According to PuckPedia.com, the Canadiens are projected to be over the salary cap by $1.1 million for 22 active players (14 forwards, six defensemen, and two goalies). Montreal will likely send down players, submit an opening roster under the cap, and then put Carey Price on Long-Term Injured Reserve (LTIR), opening up $10.5 million in cap space.
Meanwhile, the Columbus Blue Jackets have netted $7.3 million in salary cap space after trading for Laine, according to PuckPedia.com.
After much speculation and rumors, the Canadiens pulled the trigger on a deal that had been in the works for a while. Vice President of Hockey Operations Jeff Gorton and General Manager Kent Hughes have been looking to add another top-six forward to the group.
Montreal has been linked to Patrik Laine for a while now. However, teams feared trading for him because they did not know when he was coming out of the NHL/NHLPA Players Assistant Program. Once Laine left the Players Assistant Program, things ramped up again between the Canadiens and Blue Jackets.
Laine Wanted Out of Columbus
New General Manager Don Waddell wanted to make a hockey trade for Patrik Laine. However, he would retain some of his salary, if not half. That deal could have been done weeks ago, but that was one thing he did not want to do. Not to mention, he wanted players who wanted to be in Columbus. Laine had made it clear he wanted a change of scenery before the season started.
“We want players that want to be Blue Jackets and Patrik made it clear that he thought a change of scenery was best for him,” said Waddell in a statement. “We were able to acquire a good young player in Jordan Harris while maintaining financial flexibility in this deal which was very important to us. We wish Patrik all the best.”
Columbus is getting a young defenseman to join their team. Harris recorded eight goals and 24 assists in 131 games since being selected 71st overall in the third round by the Montreal Canadiens in the 2018 NHL Draft. In 56 games last season with Montreal, he averaged 17:28 in ice time. Harris has 73 points (15 goals and 58 assists) in those 131 games.
Why Laine Makes Sense For Montreal
As for the Canadiens, Patrik Laine is joining an up-and-coming talented team with a core group that includes Cole Caufield, Nick Suzuki, and Juraj Slafkovsky, who just signed an extension. Throw in Kirby Dach, and the Canadiens have a solid top-six up front. Not to mention Kaiden Guhle, who also inked a new deal along with Arber Xhekaj and Justin Barron. Adding another veteran to accompany Josh Anderson and Brandon Gallagher is enormous for the Canadiens.
While Montreal taking on $8.7 million is a risk, Laine only has two years left (this year and next) on his deal. The Canadiens can let him walk or potentially get assets for him if they don’t think it will work out. However, let’s not forget the Martin St. Louis Factor in all of this. Look what he has done with Caufield, Suzuki, and Slafkovsky. Just imagine what St. Louis could do with Patrik Laine in the lineup.
Adding a 40-goal scorer to any team is risky, but Montreal is adding a pure goal scorer. Something they need. They did not give up much to get Patrik Laine, either. Hughes did a great job in acquiring the sniper the Canadiens needed.
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