Jake Evans said you'd be crazy not to want to play in Montreal, and the Canadiens crowd is hearing Dylan Larkin's name.
"I think you'd be crazy to not wanna play here," Evans said Sunday. Nothing suggests he had a specific player in mind, but Larkin's name is already in the Montreal conversation.
Evans is a fair voice on the subject. The Canadiens center was a seventh-round pick, 207th overall in 2014, and he now has 6 points in 17 games this season, including a shorthanded goal and a game-winner.
He's also speaking from a good spot. Montreal is 11-3-3 and 8-0-2 over its last 10, fresh off a 4-2 win in Toronto on Saturday.
Detroit is living the opposite. The Red Wings are 7-8-3, have lost three straight and were shut out 4-0 in Colorado on Saturday, a tough stretch for Todd McLellan's group. Larkin has 6 points in 10 games.
Elliotte Friedman suggested last week that Larkin could reconsider his list of acceptable destinations, with Montreal already part of the discussion. Until the player widens that list, nothing moves.
Does Larkin to Montreal actually make sense?
It's a harder sell than the locker-room chatter suggests. Larkin is 30 and carries a cap hit of about $8.7 million through 2030-31, a long commitment for any team to take on.
The Canadiens also have a louder name floating around. Nikita Kucherov's reported interest in Montreal has plenty of traction, and he has 22 points in 16 games for Tampa Bay.
A big part of that buzz is the coach. Martin St-Louis's role in the Kucherov rumors was flagged by Pierre LeBrun last week as a factor that can't be ignored.
Evans' quote isn't leverage for Kent Hughes. With Montreal winning and Larkin's list unchanged, a general manager with a team this healthy in the standings has no reason to overpay for a center.
The next checkpoints are Tuesday: Detroit visits St. Louis, and Montreal hosts Minnesota.
Quick hits
VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS: Mitch Marner recorded his 100th point with the Golden Knights, a franchise benchmark, in tonight's 4-1 win in Buffalo. Not a bad way to get there.
-
PITTSBURGH PENGUINS: The Penguins posted their lines for tonight's game in Anaheim, and Ville Koivunen isn't in the group after a lower-body injury. Expect some shuffling up front.
-
TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS: Jack Roslovic is a late scratch for the Maple Leafs tonight against the Devils, according to Mark Masters. That's a rough break right before puck drop.
-
NEW JERSEY DEVILS: The Devils confirmed that Brenden Dillon is in the lineup in Toronto, and New Jersey will dress 11 forwards and 7 defensemen. A short bench up front.
-
GOALIE MATCHUP: Erik Erlendsson confirmed that Stuart Skinner starts for the Jets tonight against Andrei Vasilevskiy and the Lightning. Skinner's recent run has been shaky, so this is a tough one.
-
Should the Canadiens pursue Dylan Larkin even if he keeps Montreal off his list?
Also read on Markerzone.com:
Brady Tkachuk tries to set the tone at puck drop and runs into Nikita Zadorov
