Won't Montreal want to keep Tatar for their playoff push?

I dont think Danault signs his next contract in MTL. He clearly doesnt want to play bottom 6 and i dont see him slotting into one of the top 2 center spots long term so idk if its a fit for either side. 5.5mil to play on the 3rd line is a bit of a steep price.

I'd assume that the idea here is that Montreal will roll 3-4 lines fairly evenly (similar to Vegas). If Suzuki/KK take the next step, that could change pretty quickly though.

bergevin came out and said if they dont make noise in the playoffs next year hes gone.

Danault definitely unhappy in his role so it will be interesting if the try and trade him. As for Tippett the Cats aren’t trading him. He has 30 plus goal scoring ability at a fraction of the price.

For sure this year that will be the case. Habs still need danault for this season as insurance if suzuki or kk regress. However i think he will be playing for a payday that doesnt come the habs. I think habs will have a very balanced top three lines and that roll pretty evenly depending on who is hot at a given time. That being said i dont think Danault gets dealt at the deadline, neither does Tatar unless we are completely out of the race. Danault only gets more important as the season goes on because of how good he is defensively, but again Suzuki is going to be the number 1 center and KK more than capable to slid in at Number 2 so just no room left for Danault long term.

Agreed. Habs (IMO) , given the parity in the league, should be fighting for a wildcard spot right up until the end of the season. I don't see how they play more than about 60 games next season, so I feel like it'll be a fairly quiet deadline, similar to MLB this season.