And just like that, the NHL trade deadline has come and gone. What you see on team rosters in the coming hours is what you’ll get for the rest of the season—aside from minor league call-ups and prospects turning pro after their seasons wrap up.
For the Montreal Canadiens, the deadline passed with little more than a shrug. General Manager Kent Hughes stood pat, unable—or unwilling—to find the right deal, either to buy or sell. While other GMs reflect on their moves over a well-earned drink, Hughes is left pondering what could have been.
Remember when Jeff Gorton suggested management would reward the players for battling back from a slow start and staying in the mix? Well, I suppose that depends on your definition of “reward.”
If you see re-signing your biggest trade chip—a fourth-liner—for four more years as a reward, then congratulations, you got one.
If keeping pending UFAs with minimal trade value (depth forwards and third-pair defensemen) is your idea of rewarding the team, then mission accomplished.
But if you expected a move to actually help the Canadiens win more games, then this deadline was nothing short of disappointing.
With about 30 minutes to go to trade deadline, I have to agree with Carlo here.It doesn't need to be a homerun, but help your team a bit. #Reward#GoHabsGo #Habs
— JD Lagrange (@jdlagrange.bsky.social) 2025-03-07T19:27:56.966Z
To be clear, no one expected the Habs to go all-in or mortgage the future for a short-term boost. But looking at some of the deals made around the league, they didn’t need to—there were ways to improve, even marginally, without sacrificing the rebuild.
And it’s not just about Montreal. The Laval Rocket, who should be competing in the AHL playoffs, also saw no reinforcements. If the Habs do call players up, their AHL affiliate will be left shorthanded.
Some fans view this as a “waste of assets,” but in reality, spending a pick or a prospect for immediate help is more of an investment. Gaining playoff experience—whether for one round or three—has value in a team’s long-term growth. Every championship team has gone through it.
#Habs announce they done paper transactions with Owen Beck, who was with the Club on an emergency recall basis and Jakub Dobes to make them eligible for a loan to the Laval Rocket.
— Priyanta Emrith (@habsinhighheels.bsky.social) 2025-03-07T20:12:50.222Z
Let’s be clear: nobody was expecting the Canadiens to “go for it”, to “sell the farm” or to “land impactful players” at this trade deadline, to abandon the rebuild. But there’s a wide gap between that and doing absolutely nothing.
While many are seemingly still in the honeymoon stage, giving this management group the benefit of the doubt on everything, willing to sweep everything under the rebuild rug of excuses, the reality is that there’s room for fair criticism too. A trade deadline with your team at the verge of the playoffs and doing absolutely nothing… cannot be a positive. At the very least, Kent Hughes’ February and March have been… underwhelming.
