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The Montreal Canadiens are in a bit of a roster flux as Sammy Blais is sent down prior to the roster freeze which raises questions around the whole forward group. Josh Gosse and Jesse Poirier chat about all of it on this episode of Habs Digest.
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Source: https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7013256/2026/02/01/canadiens-big-win-sabres/
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7011189/2026/01/31/nhl-trade-deadline-2026-team-needs/
0:00 Montreal Canadiens News
0:57 This could be a problem
4:08 New Robert Thomas reports
7:45 Habs make risky move
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More moves coming… – Habs make RISKY play
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Arber Xhekaj,Zach Bolduc,Alex Newhook,Jake Evans,Brendan Gallagher,Mike Matheson,David Reinbacher,Juraj Slafkovsky,Josh Anderson,Cole Caufield,Nick Suzuki,Kirby Dach,Alex CarrierKent Hughes,Martin St Louis,Sam Montembeault,Kaiden Guhle,Owen Beck,Filip Mesar,Jayden Struble,Adam Engstrom,Sean Farrell,Lane Hutson,Ivan Demidov,Patrik Laine,Jakub Dobes
43 Comments
thomas is like the f35s…too expensive and too much propaganda
The way msl has treated Xhekaj it wouldn’t surprise me if arbor decides to sign somewhere else after this year. Gets benched for every mistake while others never do . Could see him playing for a team that lets him play his game and turns into a solid 3rd pairing dman , and we’re left looking for a big tough player to fill that role. I hope I’m wrong, but msl seems to have it in for Xhekaj.
We need laf I think he can flourish on that top line big body good hands he fits what they are building
personnaly i would try no 72 Harbor on left wing his brother at center and a right winger big seize on the right? or harbor left wing Evens Center and florient right wing? If harbor is going to be untrusted defencman and his game is needed as a tough man then play Harbor at left wing. habs need seize on the 4th line
HOLD XHEKAJ HAGE and Zharasky thats 10 years. We will need Xhekaj in the playoffs ! Other teams will run over Hudson and Caulfield . Dont sell the future !
It’s brutal how MSL doesn’t like The Sheriff! Let the guy play or move him somewhere else where he’s appreciated! Enough is enough!
Weird thing is that when he inserts Struble into the lineup, MSL plays him 12-14 mins! I don’t get what his beef is with Jackeye!
Arber, needs to get more ice. If they can give him 10-12 min a game. He needs confidence. We will need him in the playoffs. We keep talking about trading guys like Anderson and Arber. Do that and we will be pushed around in the playoffs and it will be a short run. You need character guys. Blais is another guy we should have in and make defence worry that they are going to get hit hard. You force errors with guys like this.
Gosh Sammy Blais has an interesting life this year. I wish him the best!
Trade Struble.
We have Texier and Newhook eventually coming back also! Veleno will be odd man out and the other should be interesting! Bolduc or Gally?
Not sure why people see a scandal with Xhekaj playing less than 10 minutes… we have multiple top defensemen that are able to play 25 minutes and habs are playing them like all teams do with their best defensemen…. Even if we'd find another 6th defenseman, he wouldn't play more than Xhekaj. Are people angered by this also requiring that we increase the playing time of Josh Anderson at the expense of Nick Suzuki?
We need to lose Laine. We got this without him no problemo. He’s expendable
Wifi is a gaffe machine. If there’s interest in him and the return is acceptable, move him.
There's not a Team in the NHL, that wouldn't Grab Arber in a Second! He's very underrated!!! It's Pathetic how's he's being Treated by his coach!! Arber under the right condition, will be an elite Player!!
Yes Arbur can fight which makes him a fan favourite but Xhekaj on a top 6 defense is not a cup winning team. Sorry it just isnt. Have a cry and lets move on and build a championship team
There’s 2 things here, AX not playing makes him lose confidence and it creates chaos on the backend. A constant turntable of D pairings to adapt to the Matheson/Hutson double shift is not a good recipe. Let’s get real, AX is way better defensively than a few there and no PK. Can’t get any gel if you don’t play but yet others get walked around and all good. Habs play Matheson like he’s Makar, he’s a number 3 on any contending team. They dont need 5 forwards on the ice, they all don’t need to carry the puck
Id trade guhle or the human turnover machine matheson before i traded wifi
We need 3 or 4 more Arber's, not less! We will be squashed in the playoffs if Arber is traded, wake up!
Is Laine eligible for a "conditioning" stint in Laval? Maybe 2 weeks in the AHL will shake some of the rust off.
Msl is the problem?
Carrier is awful, doesnt win puck battles, real bad on the pk…Arber could play the pk
Blais over Veleno
Back in the great 70's team,they had Pierre Bouchard as an extra in case they needed more muscle in the lineup,why not now with Xhekaj.
Smarty Marty is an idiot when Arby is gone I am also gone
I value Blais higher than Veleno. We keep hearing the Habs need more grit, and this Blais dude plays like a dog. It would suck to lose him a 2nd time, but in the end Veleno/Blais are #13 forwards, so losing either is not a huge deal. Nevertheless, if I was a betting man, Veleno would have a much higher chance of clearing waivers.
Arber got is time cut down because Hudges play 30 min + /from a injured d man in the first 2 min and MLS didn’t want risk Hudges again him 😮
blais was quality when he plays. he brings an edge. rather veleno on waivers
Only Big Deal Montreal might have in the making , is trading Dach (and a 2026 1st rnd. Draft Pick) to Toronto , for Nylander.
The need for a 'solid body' D like Xhekaj is diminishing. The Xhekaj brothers might be an interesting Trade Option in the Off Season , but right now.
Xhekaj is more valuable than Struble. Engstrom can replace Struble. And I really like Struble, however so many defencemen like him.
Xhekaj should not be going anywhere. Strubel should be out.
Sammy Blais has already been 'acquired' and 'retrieved' through waivers , so I'm not thinking any other team is going to 'acquire' him again , at least for right now. Good 4th line player for any team that NEEDS him , but this is no major Game Changing move.
Hughes is never paying that ,much for Thomas
The game had changed from the good old days. Skating and skills make the grade now. Jack eye seems often out of position at times and something always happens when he is on the ice.
If we are talking about Robert Thomas, you absolutely need to throw in a 1st rounder + some good young players developing like Arber, Hage,etc…
To reach his full potential, Arber needs to play important minutes but that won’t happen in Montreal now the way our top 4 defenders are playing. The hype about Arber is that he can fight but hockey is won with skills and skating at all positions. I am a huge Arber fan but it won’t pan out in Montreal the way he is being used. He can instantly be a fan favorite if he can develop his game as he matures.
Struble, Engstrom and Reinbacher can be in the mix as well in a packaged deal.
Stay tuned…
Bolduc could be on the bubble; I would rather have seen him go down before he became waiver eligible, but the Habs have other ideas… I hope we keep Blais and don't lose him again… I feel like a deal needs to be made to help this team out. If they won't trust Arber or Jayden then maybe we go get a right d man so both Ghule and Hutson can play their natural side. I liked Arber on the right when they tried it out earlier, but they didn't seem to stick with it so I am thinking that, even though we all agree how important he could be, the Habs mgt/coaching have come to a different conclusion. If he moves, I sure hope Hughes gets someone who lays BIG in return and who maybe has a STRONG playoff pedigree.
Blais on wawers? He could be 4th line..build his confidence…right now 3rd and 4th look useless
Bolduc needs a talking get his confidence going..hes on stupid lines
Laine needs to get more speed going …otherwise .. .useless… leg presses play with speeds to get power in his strides….. Im sorry ST.LOUIS is overcrated as a coach… 4 years and still … not mch change…kills players confidence..doesnt know how to motivate…one size fits all speeches doesnt cut it…
I got a sports expert gift card burning a hole in my wallet. Soon as the new god HAGE signs. Ez $ snipe that jersey. Hail! to the victors!!
Give jackeye more mins. We need his toughness
The Habs might play Laine tomorrow just to do him a solid, toward Olympic readiness.
Decisions better be made with expansion losses on the horizon.
Sad for Sammy Blais, I wanted him to find a spot that second time. Hope for him a great team who's going to give him ice time will take him, but if he stays I hope hell get a real chance before next year.
Laine trade for a second mascotts