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Montreal Canadiens

Canadiens Prospects Could Be On The Move This Month

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Montreal Canadiens

The Montreal Canadiens have some coveted prospects that may be on the move before the end of the current trade period in the CHL.

The Canadiens currently have nine prospects playing in the CHL’s three leagues, with the bulk of them coming from the OHL with six.

Many of these youngsters are currently playing on some powerhouse teams. Owen Beck (Mississauga), Cédrick Guindon (Owen Sound), Logan Mailloux (London), Vinzenz Rohrer (Ottawa), Joshua Roy (Sherbrooke), Daniil Sobolev (Windsor) and Jared Davidson (Seattle) are all on teams that look destined to make some noise in the playoffs.

Not all of the Montreal Canadiens’ prospects have been so lucky this season, as Riley Kidney (Acadie) and Filip Mesar (Kitchener) have been top players for their teams, but the results simply haven’t come.

With their clubs near the bottom of the standings, they may be tempted to move their star players for significant returns before the end of their respective trade periods this holiday season.

Big Fish In QMJHL

For Riley Kidney, it’s almost a foregone conclusion that the Acadie-Bathurst Titans will be moving the 19-year-old before the end of the QMJHL trade period, which is set to conclude in the first week of January.

The Canadiens’ 2nd round pick in the 2021 NHL Draft is on another level this season, putting his team on his back offensive with 13 goals and 28 assists for 41 points in just 27 games.

He has 10 points more than the runner-up, Jacob Melanson (31 points), and is routinely used in all situations. Kidney currently sits 7th in scoring in the QMJHL at the moment and 6th in points per game.

His strength as a pure centre in the league, combined with his MVP-like performances for the Titans over the last two seasons, make Kidney one of the biggest potential trade pieces in all the QMJHL.

Strong playoff performances are what put Kidney on the map for the Montreal Canadiens back in the 2021 QMJHL playoffs, and the belief is that he could put a contending team over the top this season.

With Acadie undergoing a bit of a rebuild, it would make sense to see them cash in on Kidney’s value right now, as he’s set to join the Laval Rocket next season.

It’s a reality of the business that Kidney himself is already prepared for, as he speaks on what’s to come in the interview below:

Surprising Turn Of Events

When Filip Mesar was loaned to the Kitchener Rangers, it was believed that he would be the piece to put them over the hump and help them return to their winning ways.

Unfortunately, after a strong first few games, things have fallen apart in Kitchener as of late, as they’ve been mired by injuries, including one to Mesar himself.

They’ve slid back down to the bottom of the Midwest Division in the OHL and would be virtually out of playoff contention in any other division.

Unlike other OHL-drafted player, Mesar doesn’t have to return to the OHL next season, as he was drafted as a European-based player. This means that the Kitchener Rangers will have a decision to make with Mesar.

Do you hold on to him and hpe you turn things around and maybe squeak in the playoffs or do you cash-in right now and build for next season?

There’s a real chance that Mesar will be able to crack the Laval Rocket roster next season, meaning the Rangers have one shot to maximize their asset value on Mesar.

The Rangers have some good young players on their club that will be around next season and the Canadiens assuredly would prefer Mesar play for a contending team and get prime minutes during a long playoff run in the OHL.

It all seems to be pointing in that direction as of late, with the Rangers posting a 4-6 record over their last ten games and looking to be in serious danger of tailing off. With Mesar set to head off to the World Junior Championships in the coming weeks, things might get even more bleak for the Rangers, further pushing GM Mike MacKenzie to move his prized forward for a haul.