Trade speculation surrounding the Montreal Canadiens is at an all-time high as the team has kept its eyes on the market to search for proven scoring help. Kirill Marchenko remains at the center of that discussion despite repeated denials from both his camp and the Columbus Blue Jackets.
At the same time, Columbus faces difficult long-term roster decisions that have kept outside interest alive. This backdrop has now fueled a new theory about how Montreal could attempt to gain leverage if negotiations ever become serious.
Jeff Marek, Marco D’Amico Outline Bold Canadiens Trade Play
Marchenko’s name has surfaced frequently in trade conversations because of his contract situation as much as his production.
The Blue Jackets winger is entering the final season of a team-friendly deal carrying a $3.85 million cap hit, while expectations are that his next contract could command a significant raise.
With Columbus also preparing for a big extension for franchise center Adam Fantilli, the organization’s long-term cap outlook has become a major talking point around the league.
That financial picture became part of an interesting discussion on The Sheet with Jeff Marek, where Marek shared a hypothetical strategy proposed by a former NHL general manager.
According to Marek, the former executive suggested calling Blue Jackets GM Don Waddell with a blunt warning: “There’s a $17 million offer sheet coming for Adam Fantilli unless you trade me Dmitri Voronkov.”
Marek clarified that the idea wasn’t about actually targeting Voronkov but using the threat of an offer sheet as leverage to force Columbus into another deal.
Marco D’Amico agreed that the concept represented an aggressive negotiating tactic, although he believed a different player made more sense in that scenario. “Well, I mean, that would be a little excessive for Dmitri Voronkov, but I think for Marchenko, that would make a ton of sense,” D’Amico said, shifting the conversation toward the Canadiens’ reported interest in the Blue Jackets winger.
D’Amico also explained why Columbus could be vulnerable to that kind of pressure. He pointed to the team’s recent spending decisions, including Charlie Coyle’s six-year, $36 million contract, and argued the Blue Jackets have left themselves with very little breathing room under the salary cap.
D’Amico noted that even after completing a Fantilli extension, Columbus would still need to create additional flexibility because entering the season with roughly $900,000 to $1 million in cap space would leave little room to improve the roster.
These cap concerns continue to fuel outside speculation even as Waddell has insisted he has not discussed a Marchenko trade with other NHL general managers in weeks. Marchenko’s agent, Dan Milstein, has also dismissed reports linking his client to Montreal.
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Still, with the Canadiens holding nearly $9.8 million in projected cap space and enough young talent to assemble a premium trade package, league observers continue to view them as one of the teams best positioned to test Columbus if the Blue Jackets’ financial situation becomes more restrictive.
