Off-season trade between Colorado and Montreal a possibility
Leading up to this season's trade deadline of February 24th, speculation had really heated up about a potential trade between the Montreal Canadiens and the Colorado Avalanche. The main reason for this was that Habs GM Marc Bergevin and Assistant GM Scott Mellenby had sent several days in and around Denver and had been attending games at Pepsi Centre. Both Bergevin and Avs GM Joe Sakic were coy when asked about Bergevin's presence at the game and, eventually, the trade deadline passed without anything happening. However, that doesn't mean a deal wasn't in the works and one won't get done in the off-season.
In his latest Canadiens Mailbag, Habs reporter Eric Engels was asked about the trade that never was and he seems convinced something was brewing.
"Even if we took Avalanche GM Joe Sakic's word that Bergevin's extended stay in Denver, in the lead-up to the Feb. 24 trade deadline, was purely related to his daughter attending Colorado University, I'm fairly certain Canadiens assistant GM Scott Mellanby (who was also there) doesn't have any kids attending school in the state," Engels wrote.
"Which is to say, something was brewing there and it wasn't just the coffee in young Bergevin's dorm room."
"I can't pin down what was specifically discussed — I tried to at the time and have tried since and nothing's come back to me beyond the type of speculation I could come up with myself. What I would say, however, is that some seeds were likely planted and we could see something materialize between these teams at some point this off-season. There are multiple scenarios that make them good trading partners."
As for who Sakic was targeting at the time, Tomas Tatar's name came up on more than one occasion. Tatar and his cap-friendly contract would have been perfect for a team like Colorado looking to add depth for a playoff run. There were also some rumours that Sakic was looking to reunite former QMJHL teammates Nathan MacKinnon and Johnathon Drouin, who ripped it up together playing for the Halifax Mooseheads. However, that may come from analysts making a connection out of something that just isn't there. Lastly, Carey Price's name was also thrown around a few times. It seems highly doubtful the Avs are looking to take on that contract, but nothing is impossible.
Source: Sportsnet.ca - Canadiens Mailbag
|
YESTERDAY
MAY 14, 2026
| ||||
| G | A | PTS | ||
| Nick Suzuki | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Juraj Slafkovsky | - | 3 | 3 | |
| Pavel Dorofeyev | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Ivan Demidov | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Mitch Marner | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Shea Theodore | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Phillip Danault | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Lane Hutson | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Josh Anderson | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Cole Caufield | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Josh Doan | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Jake Evans | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Mikael Granlund | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Konsta Helenius | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Brett Howden | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Alexandre Texier | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Jason Zucker | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Rasmus Andersson | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Ivan Barbashev | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Leo Carlsson | - | 1 | 1 | |
| COMPLETE STATS | ||||