Montreal Canadiens Swing Post-Deadline Trade With Devils

The Montreal Canadiens have announced they have traded forward Nathan Legare to the New Jersey Devils.

In exchange, the Habs acquired Arnaud Durandeau, originally chosen 165th overall by the New York Islanders at the 2017 NHL Entry Draft.

You may be wondering how the Canadiens and the Devils managed to pull off a trade following the NHL’s Trade Deadline, which was scheduled for Friday at 3 pm on March 8th.

Simply put, the term ‘trade deadline’ is somewhat of a misnomer. To be more accurate, Friday was the deadline by which teams could acquire a player and have him participate in the 2024 NHL playoffs, which is what allowed the Habs and the Devils to make a move beyond the deadline. In addition, neither Legare nor Durandeau can be recalled to the NHL this season.

Laval Rocket Play

Legare, 23, is a Montreal native who was originally acquired in the trade that sent Jeff Petry to the Pittsburgh Penguins. In 39 games with the Laval Rocket, Legare has scored six goals and three assists. He projected as a goal-scoring with a significant amount of truculence, though he never found his rhythm with the Canadiens’ AHL affiliate.

As for Durandeau, he’s also a Montreal native, but he possesses more offensive talent than his trade counterpart. He’s not as active in physical battles, but he should bring a much-needed element of offensive awareness to the table for the Rocket as they attempt to qualify for the Calder Cup playoffs. The 25-year-old winger scored three goals and 11 assists in 26 games for the Utica Comets this season.

As it stands, the Rocket are on the outside looking in when it comes to the North Division playoff race. However, thanks to a pair of wins during the weekend against the division-leading Cleveland Monsters, the Rocket are still in contention.

The North Division playoff race will be worth monitoring down the stretch, as it also includes the AHL affiliates for the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Ottawa Senators. For the record, the top five teams in the North Division will qualify for the playoffs.