As a Montreal fan, I'd take this deal every day of the week.

Fair trade for both sides IMO

Do you think the Canucks could squeeze a pick out of the deal too? Maybe a 4th?

I don't really like it from a Canucks perspective. I'd probably rather trade him straight up for a 2nd instead

Yeah I would agree that a 2nd would be nice but with this the Canucks get two legitimate roster pieces to improve big deficiencies in their lineup. a bottom-six defensive forward that isn't actual 5v5 garbage like Beagle and a sneaky good defensive defenceman entering his prime.

I’m not touching Virtanen. His play hasn’t exactly been inspiring, and the attitude seems to be a real issue.

he's definitely a high-risk high-reward type of player.

He’s 24 years old. There’s not much potential left for him to tap into. If you think that your team can fix his attitude, maybe you get a bit more out of him, but people usually are who they are at that age, and he’s probably not going to be able to be fixed.

Yeah, his major issue is his hockey sense and work ethic. Hockey sense is kind of what it is by his age but a change of scenery could go a long way in un-tapping the rest of what's there. He has a desirable tool kit in that he can body check, has a good shot, and is among the faster players in the NHL.

This doesn’t make sense for the Habs IMO. Seems like Virtanen hasn’t been able to find his game. We have Armia who is fitting in nicely with us and is a solid 3RW. Our right side will be Gally, Caufield, Armia.

His other problems are partying to much and showing up to camp overweight. I don't know if the Montreal nightlife would be good for Virtanen.