Montreal Canadiens trade news: Rutger McGroarty and Filip Mesar are getting more serious.
Will Michael Hage, Ivan Demidov, and Rutger McGroarty be the final two players the Montreal Canadiens add to their offensive rebuild this offseason? Along with Jordan Harris, Justin Barron, and a draft pick, Filip Mesar is purportedly part of the deal that McGroarty is receiving in exchange. After two seasons at the University of Michigan, McGroarty has 91 points in 75 games, and it appears he’s ready to turn pro. Even still, trade whispers are fueled by the Winnipeg Jets’ lack of a spot for him.
In addition to playing three games over two seasons with Laval, Mesar scored 52 points in 45 games with the Kitchener Rangers last season. In those three games, he’s only had one assist. While this is a decent deal, would the Canadiens be overpaying by adding Harris or Barron and a pick, given that Mesar might not have the same scoring upside as McGroarty?
If the Canadiens want to acquire a forward with a lot of upside, they can afford to deal a defenseman. With Demidov and Hage, they have already hit two home runs this summer, and their main goal was to address their lack of offensive depth. The intriguing circumstances surrounding Mesar may cause the Habs to worry that he will return to Europe or that he won’t play as much of a role as they had anticipated.
Although acquiring McGroarty will cost a lot, I believe the Habs must make the move. They would be the best team in the league going into the 2024–25 season if they had all of their elite defensemen in the prospect pool—McGrathy, Demidov, and Hage—plus Jacob Fowler in goal. With McGroarty and Demidov almost ready to make the leap, the Canadiens’ potential would be enormous, and the reconstruction would receive much-needed momentum.