MONAHAN MOVED TO MONTREAL
The Montreal Canadiens acquired center Sean Monahan and a conditional first-round draft pick in 2025 from the Calgary Flames for future considerations.
What does it give the Montreal Canadiens
For Montreal, this deal is all about adding another future first-round draft pick to their stables. The pick is essentially the same one that Calgary acquired from Florida in the Matthew Tkachuk/Jonathan Huberdeau trade earlier this summer. However, there are several more conditions attached to this deal, so Montreal could end up with Calgary's first-round draft pick in 2024 instead. There is also a scenario where Montreal ends up with Calgary's third-round pick in '25 and Florida's first-round pick in '26. Monahan was a salary cap dump by Calgary, but he may be healthy enough to play for Montreal in 2022-23.
What does it give the Calgary Flames
For the Flames, it was important to find a taker for all of Monahan's salary cap hit ($6.375 million) because Calgary signed unrestricted free agent center Nazem Kadri to a seven-year, $49 million contract to essentially replace Monahan on the roster. Kadri is a massive upgrade for the Flames, who lost both Johnny Gaudreau and Tkachuk this off-season but were able to replace them with Huberdeau and Kadri. The Flames should be able to remain solid contenders in the Western Conference after all of their off-season maneuvering. It is a testament to the work of GM Brad Treliving.
Fantasy impact
The jury is out on whether Monahan will be healthy enough to be a productive player for the Canadiens this season. There is also competition for jobs at the center position in Montreal at this time. In any case, Monahan comes with far too much risk and should not be drafted in most fantasy leagues this year.
Player focus
Calgary Flames
future considerations