Trades Are Happening Earlier Because of the Four Nations Tournament

The Four Nations tournament has changed the way teams are thinking about the trading deadline. Most teams only have five or six games from the time of the return from the Four Nations to the NHL trading deadline. We saw a massive one executed last night and I think more are coming, does that include the Canadiens?

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Montreal should be buyers but to what degree? Will they be last minute buyers so they don’t give away too many assets or will they make a “hockey trade” so it suits them for the future? I think they will try the latter first and if not they will get a reasonable rental that would require picks and Montreal has plenty of them in the 2025 NHL Draft.

If I were the Canadiens I would offer up one of the second round picks. This draft isn’t as deep as previous drafts and divesting a pick for a chance at the playoffs is worth it. The team that makes the earlier deals will get a leg up in the race. The ones who wait will have a short runway to make a run. At this point I think the organization has to believe they have a chance.

Moneypuck currently gives the Canadiens a 34.7% chance of making the playoffs. Their chances to get to the second round is 13.6%. Teams gamble for less and having some playoff revenue is always worth the risk and the fact that players get that chance at playoff experience could be huge.