Welcome back to another edition of NHL Rumours from the crew at Last Word on Hockey. We’re just over a week away from the NHL trade deadline, and rumours have been picking up now that the season is back underway. The Canadiens are one of the teams that have been in the thick of the rumour mill lately as they make their final push for the playoffs. In this edition of NHL Rumours, we focus on the Canadiens’ plans for the upcoming trade deadline.
All NHL rumours come from their original source and are subject to change.
NHL Rumours: Canadiens Exploring Options for Veteran Goal Scorer
NEW for @TheAthletic, trade deadline Rumblings ! Latest on Stamkos, O’Reilly, Kadri, the Panthers, Canadiens and plenty more ⤵️⤵️⤵️https://t.co/d1Mbh56LjV via @NYTimes
— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) February 26, 2026
Rumour: According to Pierre LeBrun in his latest NHL Trade Rumblings article for The Athletic, the Montreal Canadiens are exploring their options to trade Patrik Laine.
Analysis: LeBrun mentions that the Canadiens have even given Laine’s agent, Andy Scott, permission to speak to other teams to try to facilitate a trade. David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period also confirms this, saying that the Canadiens have been in discussions with multiple teams regarding Laine’s availability. Pagnotta’s colleague Dennis Bernstein mentioned that the Los Angeles Kings were interested; however, just doesn’t seem to be a fit at this moment. Which is rather surprising considering they just lost forward Kevin Fiala for the rest of the season.
The issue for the Canadiens is that they’re not exactly trading from a position of strength. The oft-injured goal scorer has played just five games this season, registering just one assist. Though last year, Laine was able to produce 20 goals and 33 points in 52 games with the Canadiens, helping them secure a playoff spot for the first time since their Stanley Cup Playoff run in 2021. The skill level and scoring ability can’t be denied. However, the bigger questions surrounding Laine are his work ethic and whether he can stay healthy.
Laine All but Done in Montreal
As it stands, Laine currently looks like the odd man out in Montreal. With the way the team has played without him, and the acquisition of Alexandre Texier, to go along with the returns of Alex Newhook and Kirby Dach, Laine doesn’t figure to be able to crack the lineup. While the Canadiens have been rumoured to be in the market for a winger to play with Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield, the club doesn’t feel Laine is the right piece. Packaging Laine in a potential deal to get that upgrade, or moving Laine’s contract so that they have more cap room to make a move they feel is needed, is what it seems Kent Hughes is looking to do, prior to the trade deadline.
One major plus for the Canadiens when trying to make this deal is that they haven’t used any of their salary retention spaces yet. The Canadiens could eat some of Laine’s cap hit, which could be a major benefit if moved to a cap-strapped team prior to the deadline. With Laine’s deal ending at the end of the season, it’s not going to be a major detriment for the Canadiens to do this, and it will give them more wiggle room to make a trade to improve their own roster for the playoffs.
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