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The Montreal Canadiens will be looking to make a significant move or two ahead of the trade deadline. Team brass already acquired Phillip Danault from the Los Angeles Kings to add depth at the center position. It was then recently revealed that the move, along with Oliver Kapanen’s impressive development, has forced Montreal to change its trade focus.

Instead of eyeing another center, the Canadiens will instead look to acquire a star winger in the coming weeks. And, according to the team’s president of hockey operations, Jeff Gorton, they are not afraid to be aggressive in their search.

In a new sprawling interview with Sportsnet, Gorton admitted that bringing in a top player to an already thriving team may just put them over the top. “When you have a team that you feel like is pretty good, and you add a piece or two, you know what it could mean,” Gorton stated.

Montreal, however, is currently financially handcuffed due to its salary cap. According to PuckPedia.com, the Canadiens have the lowest amount of current cap space in the entire league. Because of this, Gorton knows that he will have to offload a player or two to add to the roster.

“If you look at our roster, I think it’s pretty clear we have extra guys,” Gorton continued. “I do think adding some of the guys we added got us through the time we were pretty banged up, so we had some depth that kept us above water and kept us playing pretty good hockey when in years past we probably would’ve caved in.”

Patrik Laine is the Most Likely Montreal Canadiens Star to be Traded

GettyThe Canadiens are thriving without Patrik Laine in the lineup.

One specific player that may be departing Montreal soon is Patrik Laine. The star forward is in the final season of his four-year, $34.8 million ($8.7 million AAV) deal. Although he was productive throughout the 2024-25 campaign, Laine has only managed to play five total games this season.

Despite the setback, the winger is expected to return soon after recovering from surgery. The timing could work out very well for the Canadiens. NHL insider Nick Kypreos included Laine in his most recent trade board. Not only is the team willing to offload the star, but they are open to retaining a big chunk of his salary. According to Kypreos, Montreal would even eat half of his wages to facilitate a trade.

Gorton obviously refused to specifically mention Laine in the aforementioned interview. Nevertheless, the forward is the team’s third-highest paid player on average, and they are thriving without him. In fact, the Canadiens have scored the third-most goals in the league in 2025-26.

Montreal Will Likely Receive Calls Regarding Laine

While Montreal is willing to offload Laine’s contract, they should be able to find a suitable trade partner. The winger would be a quality asset to have for a true Stanley Cup contender. In 26 career playoff games, Laine has managed to rack up 17 points. Along with scoring, the star can also bring physicality from the forward position.

The Canadiens could dangle Laine to bring back a quality winger or even another blueliner. Although the team is looking for improvements up front, they have endured defensive issues throughout the season. In fact, the Habs have allowed the ninth-most goals on the campaign.

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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