If Kent never existed

Kent pulled off a master-class this off-season with the Karlsson trade.

Out:
Hoffman (cap dump)
Pitlick (an inconsequential loss)

In:
2nd
3rd
4th
Nathan Legare
Gustav Lindstrom
Tanner Pearson

All it actually cost him was $2.3M in retention to get three draft picks, two prospects and a serviceable forward. Very damn impressive.

I know! That's why I posted this: to show how amazing Kent Hughes is. For a rebuild, the Habs are amazing. They did the impossible: turn a team around in 2 years. The Habs might be ready to compete next year and they'll have a dinasty in 3 years, if they aren't extremely unlucky

Haha I'd pump the brakes a little there. This team has a long way to go before they start pushing for a playoff spot, probably good two or three years, but he's really put them on the fast track. There are some teams where rebuilds are just poorly mishandled, like AZ up until now. Sometimes rebuilds can take five, six or even seven years. He'll have them stepping out in four or five years (including these last two years) and that's impressive.