Montreal Canadiens general manager Marc Bergevin is pulling out all the stops in order to win a Stanley Cup within the next two-three years. He’s making bold and sometimes alienating decisions all with the intention of improving his club in order to turn it into a competitive one in the short-term. In what is his busiest and arguably best offseason to date, he’s left his mark on a team that desperately needed drastic changes in order to solidify itself amongst the NHL’s elite. Now, with rumours regarding Nathan Beaulieu’s potential departure, a specific strategy could be in place to add what the GM surely believes is the final, missing piece of the puzzle.


When Bergevin traded P.K. Subban, he brought in one of the league’s top-5 defensemen. All of his (overly reported) qualities aside, Shea Weber is going to protect the injury-prone pillar of the team, Carey Price. Weber will intimidate forwards who try to take runs at the superstar goalie, and won’t hesitate to drop the gloves if anyone comes near him. If you’ll recall, nobody stood up for Price when Chris Kreider crashed into him during the 2014 Eastern Conference finals. That demonstrated not only a lack of character but cowardice that won’t be an issue moving forward.

When the general manager signed the best player outside of the NHL in Alexander Radulov, he brought in a capable right-winger who can light up the lamp at least 25 times a season, if not more. More than a big, #1 center, this was what I believed the Canadiens lacked, considering that after nearly 23 years, Alex Galchenyuk established himself as the number 1 center that Habs fans have been begging for.

In signing two-time Stanley Cup champion Andrew Shaw, Bergevin added grit, speed, character as well as depth scoring and a player with a nose for the net, much like Brendan Gallagher.

Finally, Al Montoya is a proven and capable backup goaltender who will be serviceable to a team that needed consistency between the pipes last season.


But you already knew all of this. However, the issue revolving around Beaulieu is what’s making headlines now, and it’s been reported by several different sources that Bergevin is listening to offers for the 23-year-old defenseman.


The general manager has openly told Francois Gagnon of RDS that he’s fielding offers, knowing very well that this news would go public. I’d argue that it was deliberate, and therefore I commend this strategic business approach of inflating Beaulieu’s value and thus increasing demand for his services. After all, he has yet to achieve his top-4 potential even if I personally believe that he will sooner than later and should therefore remain with the team.


However, as we’ve seen time and time again, players who make headlines for all of the reasons that are not in line with the organization’s conservative and discreet modus operandi are shipped out of town. In Beaulieu’s case, it’s hard to tell what his intentions truly were when he took to Twitter to defend Max Pacioretty after head coach Michel Therrien apparently called #67 the “worst captain in franchise history”. One thing is for certain, it garnered the type of attention to Beaulieu that the Habs want to avoid, so the timing is all too coincidental.

I’m not implying that a single tweet will cost Beaulieu his spot on the team. It could perhaps be one of many reasons why he could change addresses in the near future. The main factor could be his value.


The rumours surrounding the Canadiens’ interest in UFA defenseman Kris Russell and Kevin Shattenkirk have all but died down since the start of the summer. While I’m not convinced Russell is necessarily all he’s hyped out to be, I’m confident that Shattenkirk would be a welcomed addition to the lineup. Trading Beaulieu would only be the first step in acquiring the services of one of the aforementioned blue-liners, as the former’s easily digestible $1 million salary cap hit surely has other executives drooling at the mouth.


I strongly believe in Beaulieu’s potential to be a long-term and highly effective part of this team. However, bringing in Shattenkirk will immediately solidify the blue line as there’s no telling where Beaulieu will progress in his development this upcoming season. You know exactly what you’re getting in 27-year-old Shattenkirk, who posted 14 goals and 44 points in 72 games last year while playing sound defense in his own zone, not to mention an added bonus of 6 power play goals.

Evidently, moving certain players around such as David Desharnais and Alexei Emelin will be required in order to free up enough cap space to add Shattenkirk to the mix. Don’t be surprised, then, if Beaulieu is no longer part of the fold within the next few weeks or months. After all, Bergevin said he wasn’t shopping Subban and ended up trading him. Now, he’s singing a similar song regarding #28, and a secretive Bergevin knows exactly what he’s doing in going public about someone who’s clearly on the trade block.

Join the Discussion: » 143 Comments » Post New Comment

» Update: Flames host Habs; hot streak stats, by Andrew Saadalla

» Habs' streak just the tip of the iceberg, by Andrew Saadalla

» Habs visit Canucks, make lineup changes by Andrew Saadalla

» Five consecutive wins and a bone to pick, by Andrew Saadalla

» Subban returns, and the Julien effect by Andrew Saadalla