Canadiens Riley Kidney On The Move, Teams In Hot Pursuit

The Montreal Canadiens have quite a few impressive prospects in Canadian Major Junior, but one, in particular, is attracting some serious interest in the QMJHL.

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.

Despite not making the World Juniors roster due to an untimely injury, he’s the biggest fish on the market in the QMJHL at the moment and he’s got a multitude of teams in the hunt.

Big Fish, Little Pond

For Riley Kidney, it was almost a foregone conclusion that the Acadie-Bathurst Titans would 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.

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.

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.

L’espoir du #CH, Riley Kidney, passe un peu sous le radar, mais il performe très bien aussi! pic.twitter.com/QGr6bSGkgn

— Etienne Ferland (@EtienneFerland) November 5, 2022

High Interest

According to sources in the know, Kidney is being courted by several top QMJHL teams like the Sherbrooke Phoenix, the Gatineau Olympiques and Kidney’s hometown Halifax Mooseheads.

General Manager and Head Coach Gordie Dwyer has a substantial asking price for his big prize, with many in the QMJHL waiting to see which team will ultimately pay the price.

As an example, the Quebec Remparts paid a premium to acquire Carolina Hurricanes’ prospect, Justin Robidas, by sending two 1st-round picks and a 3rd-round pick to Val d’Or for the talented forward.

That’s the minimum one could expect Kidney to go for on the open market at this time, but sources close to the situation say that this may go down to the wire.

The Montreal Canadiens prospect is being intentionally kept out of games at the moment to ensure he rests the lower-body injury he sustained at Team Canada’s camp last week, as he is expected to be moved within the next two weeks.

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:

NB: This interview was done prior to the unfortunate injury at the World Juniors camp and Kidney being cut from the roster).