Analysis | Joel Edmundson traded at the right time

Nobody, absolutely nobody, at the Canadiens, will say a word against Joel Edmundson.

The Manitoban, in three seasons in Montreal, has established himself as one of the most popular players in the locker room, both with his teammates and his coaches. In a young and inexperienced defence, he, like David Savard, played the essential role of big brother. In itself, this contribution is priceless.

However, by trading him to the Washington Capitals, general manager Kent Hughes avoided a serious problem. That of seeing one of its main leaders become a ball and chain on the ice. Especially since this ball would deprive a young defender on the rise of precious minutes of play.

The deal speaks for itself. To acquire Edmundson, the Capitals gave up two modest draft picks (3^e and 7^e turn in 2024), while the Habs will pay half his salary next season. We are a long way from the juicy first-round pick reported in the most enthusiastic rumors last year.

Weakened by recurring back injuries that have cost him the equivalent of almost a full season for two years, the 30-year-old veteran has struggled a lot in 2022-2023. Across the league, 171 defensemen have played at least 800 five-on-five minutes. Edmundson led the group in goals against against the opposition while on the ice – 4.49 goals per 60 minutes. It is, moreover, the worst performance of the last 10 full seasons of the NHL (82 games).

He wasn’t just unlucky. Also last season, he ended up at 172^e rank in expected opponent goals, at 163^e when it comes to quality scoring chances granted, calculates the Natural Stat Trick site.

A surprise in his first campaign with the team, he has proven to be a safe bet in defense and a key part of the team’s unlikely promotion to the 2021 final.

His situation, however, has changed. At all.

In no rush to leave

Edmundson has repeatedly said how much he loves playing in Montreal. He also delivered a testimony particularly charged with emotion, after the deadline for transactions, last March. Finding himself at the heart of the rumors had put him under a lot of stress, he admitted. He was in no rush to pack his bags.

The management either, at this time, did not force the note to exchange it, revealed Kent Hughes in a virtual press briefing on Saturday. The offers, similar to what the Capitals gave for him, weren’t good enough under the circumstances. The uncertain health of the defender urged caution among buyers. And we had, at the CH, the desire to see him finish the season in the blue-white-red uniform. A decision in line with the situation of CH, already deprived of Kaiden Guhle and Arber Xhekaj on the left flank.

During the off-season, however, the analysis grid is different. Hughes said he probably won’t be looking to add free agents to his roster so as not to “block” young players in their development. If he had kept Edmundson, that’s what would have happened. The GM also confirmed that the minutes played by “Steady Eddy” would be redistributed among the club’s current defenders. These, he believes, are ready to do “more work”.

Kent Hughes also wants Edmundson to leave “a part of him in our locker room”, so that the young players of the organization “keep lessons during their career” in Montreal.

However, he made them, in a way, a gift by sending him to other places. When we know how ruthless the Montreal market can be, maybe Edmundson will also come out a winner in the end.

The Canadian in a nutshell

Belzile in New York

An unrestricted free agent, Alex Belzile wanted a one-way contract. He partly achieved his goal, since the New York Rangers granted him a two-year contract, at the minimum salary of $775,000 per season. The contract is twofold for the first campaign, but not for the second. If he is returned to the American League in 2024-2025, the Quebecer will therefore earn his full salary. After having rendered great service to the Canadian last season, in particular by his positive ascendancy over young players and even by his offensive contribution (14 points in 31 games), Belzile found himself very far in the hierarchy of the club in attack. Kent Hughes said he “tried to keep him in Montreal,” even for two years, but there were “limits” to what he was willing to give him. As well to say that a contract with a shutter, even for one year, was not possible.

In defense of Reinbacher

Poor David Reinbacher must not have anticipated the wave of discontent that followed his selection by the Canadian in fifth place in the draft last Wednesday. Fans disappointed that the Austrian defender was preferred to Russian striker Matvei Michkov took aim at Reinbacher on social media, to the point that the youngster, in a post highlighting “a dream come true” on Instagram, disabled the comments. “It would be understandable for supporters to direct their anger towards management and recruiters, but [Reinbacher] has nothing to do with our decision. He is living his dream,” said Kent Hughes. Knowing the “passion” of Montrealers for the CH, he was not “surprised” by this reaction, but invited the dissatisfied to give the runner a chance in order to let him “show on the ice what we saw from him “. “We believe that he is a very good player on whom we will count for a long time,” he concluded on this subject.

Other players could leave

At the risk of insisting, there are a lot of people at the Canadiens for the next season, especially in attack. It was therefore not surprising to hear Kent Hughes clearly mention the “possibility” that the team would try to dispose of a few additional elements before training camp. He obviously didn’t point anyone out, but various outlets have reported over the past few days that Mike Hoffman, Joel Armia and Christian Dvorak are on the market. “We had conversations with different teams before the draft and the opening of the free agent market, and we will continue to have them,” said Hughes. [Ces équipes] are aware that with the number of attackers we have, we are open to moving. We’ll see where it takes us. »

Harvey-Pinard, Newhook, Montembeault…

When the unrestricted free agent frenzy subsides and agents start answering the phone again to discuss their other clients, the Canadiens will have to come to terms with their restricted free agents, starting with Rafaël Harvey-Pinard and Alex Newhook. . Hughes had good words for Harvey-Pinard, praising his “versatility” in particular, and said he was hopeful of reaching an agreement with him. Negotiations with Newhook have not yet begun, but there too, the CEO does not seem to be in a hurry. The issue to be settled with him will be the number of years of the contract, he said. He had no further discussions with Samuel Montembeault, whose agreement will expire after the next season. His record will come after those of the aforementioned players, we understand.

Maybe one more guardian

The Canadian currently has four goaltenders under contract, and it is not excluded that a veteran will be added to the group. “If we can add depth, we’ll evaluate it,” Kent Hughes said of his masked men’s situation. “All options are on the table right now,” he said. If the duo of Jake Allen and Samuel Montembeault seems established for the next season, ceding Cayden Primeau to the Laval Rocket is not without risk, since it will now have to be subject to waivers beforehand. The only remaining option, in Laval, would then be Jakub Dobes, who, fresh out of the university ranks, has never played in the American League.

Reinforcement for the Rocket

The Habs have announced the signing of Quebec forward Philippe Maillet and defender Brady Keeper. The two have entered into one-year, two-part agreements. They will likely play with the Laval Rocket. Maillet, 30, played two NHL games in 2020-21 with the Washington Capitals. Otherwise, his professional career has been split between the American League and the KHL, where he played his last two seasons. Keeper, 27, also has two NHL games under his belt, but with the Florida Panthers. He spent the last season with the Abbotsford Canucks of the American League.