Kent Hughes was very busy at the draft, trading to acquire Noah Dobson and making a few pick swaps as well to ensure he could secure the players his scouting team was high on, but he’s far from done.
While the Montreal Canadiens’ GM has acknowledged that there are plenty of teams looking to bolster their center line, he’s still open to acquiring an impact winger to reinforce his top six, and there has been a lot of chatter about Jordan Kyrou perhaps being available at the draft.
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Insider Pierre LeBrun reported that multiple teams are interested in whether the St. Louis Blues are indeed seriously interested in moving him. The Canadiens are one of the interested teams.
Kyrou is a 27-year-old right winger who was drafted 35th overall in the second round of the 2016 draft by the Blues. He’s been a high scorer for the last four seasons, posting 75, 73, 67, and 70 points over that period. This season, he averaged only 17-29 minutes of ice time per game and was primarily used on the second line alongside Brayden Schenn and Dylan Holloway.
In the playoffs, he scored three goals in seven games as the Blue fell to the Winnipeg Jets in the first round. He’s just about to embark on the third year of his eight-year contract, and, interestingly, the pact, which has an $8.125 M AAV, has a full no-trade clause kicking in on July 1. In other words, if the Blues do want to trade him, they are getting dangerously close to the “it’s not or never” territory.
Kyrou’s age and profile certainly match the Canadiens’ requirement timeline-wise, and he can indeed be described as an impact winger. Granted, the salary is a tad high, and if you take it on, you are stuck with it until the full no-move clause becomes a modified one for season 2030-31, when he’ll still be able to submit a 15-team no-trade list.
The Blues don’t have to trade him though, they come in $1.6 M under the cap right now and they do have 23 NHL contracts signed for the next season, so for them, it’s really about deciding if they want the player to remain for all those seasons and not about a cap crunch.
If they do decide to trade Kyrou, though, the question becomes what could they be interested in? Hughes has accustomed us to trades involving draft picks and futures, but with the acquisition of Dobson, he finds himself with a lot of blueliners on his hands, including one that could hold fair value on the market in Mike Matheson. However, the veteran is entering the final year of his contract, and that could diminish his value.
Matheson reportedly met with Jeff Gorton and Hughes at the scouting combine, and according to sources, a potential extension was discussed, but does the arrival of Dobson change his desire to stay in town?
Lane Hutson’s arrival already diminished his offensive role, and chances are it will be further reduced with Dobson now patrolling the Canadiens’ blueline. According to RG.org’s Marco D’Amico, the Edmonton Oilers have already approached the Habs about Matheson, and they will be an interesting option to explore, depending, of course, on what they have to offer.
At this stage, it’s hard to know if the Blues are seriously considering pulling the trigger on a Kyrou deal, but if they are, it’s an option that’s worth thoroughly exploring, something Hughes will no doubt do in the limited time left before Kyrou’s no-movement clause kicks in.
Photo credit: Jeff Le-Imagn Images
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