Montreal Canadiens
Canadiens Have Decision To Make On Newly-Acquired Prospect
The Montreal Canadiens acquired a new prospect at the NHL Trade Deadline, but they have very little time to decide his future.
27-year-old defenceman Tony Sund was acquired by the Montreal Canadiens in their three-way trade with the San Jose Sharks and Pittsburgh Penguins last March at the NHL Trade Deadline.
In exchange for retaining 50% of Nick Bonino‘s contract and prospect Arvid Henrikson, the Montreal Canadiens received Sund and a 2024 5th-round pick from the San Jose Sharks.
The Sharks had signed Sund to a one-year deal on May 19 for the 2019-2020 season, but never came over to play for them due to the ongoing pandemic. The Sharks, therefore, retained his rights until the July 1 immediately following his 27th birthday, which is a month away.
Sund is considered a bit of a late bloomer, playing a majority of his time in the Finnish Liiga before making his mark in the SHL in Sweden over the last two seasons.
The 6-foot-3, 183-pound defender is quite mobile for his size and plays a solid two-way game. He played alongside fellow Montreal Canadiens prospect Adam Engstrom with Rögle this season, forming a pair with the 19-year-old man and helping him transition to country’s top league.
The Canadiens thus likely had a significant amount of data on him, having monitoring Engstrom quite closely this year.
Having already signed an entry-level contract in 2019, Sund is eligible to receive a regular, standard contract, should the Canadiens choose to sign him.
However, Montreal Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes doesn’t have long to make a decision, as the July 1 deadline is fast approaching.
Although Sund could be an interesting gamble for the club, the Canadiens are littered with many left-shot defencemen, both on the main club and in Laval.
However, if the Canadiens decide to move some left-shot defencemen in moves to improve the club at other positions, Sund could be an excellent insurance policy with some upside.
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Considering that we let a good goalie prospect in Dichow walk (a position we’re organizationally weak in) to keep flexibility in our 50 contract limit, I can’t imagine keeping yet another LD, especially one that’s not even eligible for an ELC anymore. See ya, Tony!
Difference is, Tony can play right and there’s room for him.
No room for Dichow with Primeau and Dobes in Laval.
Primeau should be in Montreal. And Allen to avalanche or another team because georgiev isn’t going to cut it.
Primeau will get claimed by somebody if we try to slip him through waivers. If that happens, all the time and effort put into developing him will have been a waste. He either has to play in the NHL or be traded imo.
Being Engstrom’s D partner, I realize Sund can play the right side, but so can any of the LD we have right now that need a spot. One of Matheson, Guhle, Harris or Xhekaj has to move (along with trading all of Edmundson, Savard and Wideman). The remaining 2 RD spots go to Kovacevic and Barron. I have nothing against Sund, but when there are a dozen players ahead of him in the system… That’s the problem with quantity vs quality. I hate drafting or trading for a guy, only to let him walk away for nothing.
In Laval?
At this rate only Mailloux and Tourigny are signed to deals that play RD.
As for Primeau, not sure he’d get claimed. And there’s also Poulin on an AHL deal.
Playing time would have been an issue. Also Dichow has a valid contract in Europe next season, meaning the Canadiens would have wasted a contract slot signing him for next season.
Poulin doesn’t have an NHL future with us, so he’s expendable over keeping Dichow and giving him his spot imo.
I don’t deny we are thin on the right side with actual righties, but with the 5 LD we have in Montreal already and Hutson and Engstrom on the horizon, we’re going to have guys playing on their off side regardless. I don’t have anything against Sund, especially if we want to bring him over with Engstrom to help him get acclimated to North American life. My issue was letting a goalie go that I felt had a better shot of making it to the NHL than a guy who’s like 15th in line on the D depth chart.
There’s also Norlinder. I assume they will let Sund go and I didn’t understand the Dichow move but I’m supremely confident HuGo knows infinitely more than I do.
Same. 😁
The two are not connected?
Likely, but there’s always the possibility of the whole 50 contracts limit thing being a factor. To me, they could have signed Dichow to an AHL contract so he wouldn’t have counted towards the limit though, so choosing not to sign him says they don’t want him. I just felt he’s more value than yet another LD (even if he’s comfortable playing on his off side).
Dichow already signed a contract for next season in Europe before the June 1st deadline, so signing him to an AHL deal wasn’t possible.
Ok. Thanks. Good to know. To me that would indicate that he already had word/understanding that he wasn’t going to be offered a contract otherwise he wouldn’t have blocked his own path.
Sayonara to Allen and Edmundson for sure.I wouldn’t trade Savard yet.