Canadiens Running Out Of Time To Showcase Sean Monahan

The Montreal Canadiens announced forward Sean Monahan took part in practice with a no-contact jersey.

It’s a great development given how quickly the March 3rd trade deadline is approaching, setting the stage for a showcase in the next few games.

Sean Monahan est là. Chandail pas de contacts. Vidéo exclusive. Très exclusive. 🔵⚪️🔴 pic.twitter.com/5tiL50vwXI

— Marc-André Perreault (@MA_PerreaultTVA) February 16, 2023

Next Step

It’s a poorly kept secret the Canadiens will attempt to trade Monahan at the deadline, but as the two-week injury turned into a two-month recovery, Monahan’s value has certainly taken a hit on the NHL’s trade market.

The last time Monahan took to the ice in an NHL game was in 2022, with the centre leaving the game against the Vancouver Canucks on Dec.5 after scoring a first-period goal.

In retrospect, allowing Monahan to play against the Calgary Flames a few nights before, despite a lingering foot injury, was a questionable decision.

But it was a homecoming of sorts, an important event that allowed Monahan to get some much-needed closure after the team who drafted him unceremoniously traded him to the Canadiens this summer.

However, leaving him on the roster for the next two games wasn’t just a curious decision, it cast doubt as to Monahan’s overall value, pointing to his recurring injury issues as a sticking point in potential trade negotiations.

Now that he’s nearing a return, the Canadiens will have to not only showcase their forward, but they’ll also have to prove to the rest of the league that he’s not damaged goods.

There are very few quality centres available on the NHL’s trade market at the moment.

Now that Bo Horvat has found a new home, players like Max Domi and Jonathan Toews are available, but you’d be hard-pressed to argue they bring more value to the table than Monahan, who excels in all three zones, unlike Toews and Domi.

But scarcity alone won’t be enough to drive up his price in what is setting out to be a sleepy trade market.

Scheduling Concerns

The Canadiens have seven games left before the trade deadline.

Monahan is not expected to face the Hurricanes on Thursday, and he is unlikely to be ready to play against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday.

That leaves just five opportunities to not only showcase Monahan but to prove to the rest of the league that he’s an asset worth investing in.

Fortunately, despite having the most difficult strength of schedule in the league, the five games will present a good opportunity for Monahan from an offensive standpoint.

The Canadiens will face the New Jersey Devils and the Los Angeles Kings in that time frame, teams that outclass the Canadiens by a significant margin.

But they’ll also play against the Ottawa Senators, Philadelphia Flyers, and the San Jose Sharks.

It’s impossible to predict exactly when Monahan will return to play, and who he will face, but if the goal is to put him in a situation conducive to producing, the aforementioned trio of teams presents the best opportunity to remind the rest of the NHL of Monahan’s value.