We all know the Montreal Canadiens had a trade of substance fall through at the last minute at this year’s deadline involving a player that GM Kent Hughes would and could target again this offseason.
Plenty of names have surfaced in the aftermath regarding who that may have been, though according to a recent report from David Pagnotta, it sounds like it was, in fact, Matthew Knies of the bitter rival Toronto Maple Leafs.
He says that a deal sending Knies to Montreal for two top prospects and two first-round draft picks was accepted by Toronto, but not in time to beat the 3 p.m. ET deadline.
“They almost checked off one box ahead of the trade deadline and while Hughes would not confirm the ‘big trade’ he almost completed ahead of the trade deadline, multiple sources have told TFP the Habs had agreed to a trade with the Toronto Maple Leafs for winger Matthew Knies.
As I spoke about on DFO Rundown Insider Edition earlier today, in exchange for Knies, the Canadiens were going to send highly-touted prospect Alexander Zharovsky (whose name I mispronounced in the segment, my apologies), another top prospect and two first-round draft picks to Toronto. Sources also confirmed the second player was not Michael Hage nor David Reinbacher.
According to sources, the Canadiens approached the Leafs late in the day on deadline day about the move, which Toronto accepted, but the Leafs were unable to get the trade filed ahead of the 3pm ET deadline,”
The 23-year-old Knies has five years left on the six-year, $46.5 million contract extension he signed with the Maple Leafs just last June. He, of course, notably has no trade protection until the final year of the deal (2030-31).
There was a lot of buzz at the time around Knies to the Canadiens, and we’re now starting to learn the exact details about what did and didn’t go down.
New GM John Chayka wasn’t in charge back then, so what’s most interesting now is finding out what his stance is on Knies and whether he’s also willing to move the young star winger. It just adds another wrinkle to what should be a busy offseason in Toronto.
Next: Montreal Canadiens Seen as Landing Spot for Dylan Larkin
