Two Kent Hughes acquisitions could pay off for the Canadiens for years
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A year ago, plenty of people were questioning the price Kent Hughes paid for Noah Dobson.
Twelve months later, those doubts are gone.
The 26-year-old right-shot defenseman delivered across the board, putting up 47 points in 80 games on the Montreal Canadiens’ top pair, with virtually none of that production coming on the power play.
At $9.5 million per season through 2033, the price tag already looks pretty reasonable for a player of that caliber.
And his impact goes beyond the numbers.
Lane Hutson is directly benefiting from Dobson’s presence, freed from the burden of carrying the blue line on his own.
But the real surprise comes from somewhere else.
The price Montreal paid – Emil Heineman and two first-round picks in 2025 – is also starting to look better with time.Corey Pronman of The Athletic just ranked Alexander Zharovsky 11th in his annual re-draft of the 2025 class, even though Zharovsky was originally selected 34th overall.
Alexander Zharovsky makes the Noah Dobson trade look even better for the Canadiens
No other player drafted outside the first round ranks that high on the list.
The New York Islanders haven’t been as fortunate.
The 16th pick turned into Victor Eklund, who is now ranked 27th by Pronman.
The bottom line: Montreal came away with an established defenseman and a top-12 prospect from the 2025 draft, even after trading away two first-round picks.
On top of that, everything suggests the Canadiens would have drafted Zharovsky with the 16th or 17th overall pick anyway, which makes the trade look even better.
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Two Kent Hughes acquisitions could pay off for the Canadiens for years
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