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The Montreal Canadiens have seemingly switched their trade focus in recent days. Montreal will still be looking to strengthen its roster ahead of the March 6 deadline. After all, the club’s current three-game win streak has solidified its place in the playoff race. At the moment, the Canadiens are holding on to third place in the Atlantic Division.
It was previously revealed on January 21 that Habs GM Kent Hughes was discussing a potential trade with the Calgary Flames. According to the report, the talks focused on Nazem Kadri. The Canadiens have been heavily linked with acquiring a star center in recent weeks. At the time, Kadri seemed to be the best fit among the available players in this position.
Nevertheless, Montreal now appears to be targeting other forwards. According to RG’s Marco D’Amico, the Canadiens will be eyeing a scoring winger in the coming weeks. The decision to shift focus to a winger comes down to two specific reasons. First of all, the introduction of Phillip Danault has essentially balanced the team’s center position. Montreal acquired the veteran center from the Los Angeles Kings back in December.
On top of this, Oliver Kapanen has emerged as a quality second-line center behind superstar Nick Suzuki. The 22-year-old former second-round selection already has 30 points in 55 games during the 2025-26 season. Although he was a relatively high draft pick, Kapanen was previously expected to eventually become a bottom-six NHL player. Nevertheless, his development has made the Canadiens reevaluate their needs at center.
Montreal Canadiens Need a Star Winger More Than Nazem Kadri
GettyThe Canadiens seemingly need a winger more than a center, such as Nazem Kadri.
With Danault and Kapanen in position, Hughes now does not necessarily need yet another star center. Danault is doing his job in the bottom six as a veteran leader, while also winning face-offs at an impressive 58.2%. Kapanen, on the other hand, has found chemistry being lined up between Ivan Demidov and Juraj Slafkovsky on the second line.
Instead, as D’Amico points out, the Canadiens are more likely looking to round out their top line. Cole Caufield and Suzuki are budding superstars on the line, but they could benefit from a true scoring winger on the other side. At the moment, Kirby Dach has been utilized as the right winger on the top line. While the former third overall pick has quality, he may not be widely viewed as a first-line player at the moment.
While D’Amico is reporting that Montreal wants a scoring winger, he did not provide any potential targets. The Canadiens will have to be creative in the market if they bring in a new player, though. According to PuckPedia.com, the club essentially has no current cap space at the moment.
Canadiens Could use Defensive Reinforcements
Although a scoring winger is wanted by Montreal, they seemingly need defensive reinforcements even more. In fact, the Canadiens are averaging 3.44 goals per game during the current campaign. This particular figure is the fourth-best mark in the NHL. Conversely, the club has allowed 3.24 goals per game. Only nine other teams have posted a higher statistic on the campaign.
As far as Kadri is concerned, Montreal could eventually reenter the chase for the star. If not, the veteran center will certainly receive plenty of attention from other clubs around the league.
Christopher Moore Christopher Moore has been a Heavy.com contributor since 2025. With over a decade of experience in the industry, he has published thousands of articles reporting on multiple professional sports. He was previously a sports writer for World Soccer Talk, the Yahoo! Contributor Network, and the Maryland Sports Blog. More about Christopher Moore
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