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Some Canadiens fans might have had a sleepness night Friday — along with GM Marc Bergevin — hoping the team could acquire centre Pierre-Luc Dubois from the Columbus Blue Jackets.
They were left disappointed Saturday morning when news broke that the Blue Jackets had dealt the Ste-Agathe-des-Monts native to the Winnipeg Jets, along with a third-round pick at the 2022 NHL Draft, in exchange for right-winger Patrik Laine and centre Jack Roslovic.
Late Friday night, TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun tweeted that trade talks were heating up for Dubois and that the Canadiens, Jets and Anaheim Ducks were believed to be the front-runners. Aaron Portzline, who covers the Blue Jackets for The Athletic, then tweeted at 10:55 p.m. “go to bed” adding it was unlikely a deal would be competed Friday night but “Saturday could be a bid day, though.”
It was a big day for the Blue Jackets and the Jets, but not the Canadiens. The price for the 22-year-old Dubois was obviously too high for Bergevin and with the Canadiens off to a 3-0-2 start this season there are Canadiens fans who will be happy he didn’t make a deal. You have to think Blue Jackets GM Jarmo Kekalainen would have wanted young centre Nick Suzuki or Jesperi Kotkaniemi, plus more, in exchange for Dubois. Bergevin also would have had to make moves to fit Dubois’s $5-million salary under the NHL salary cap, which the Canadiens are already up against. According to CapFriendly.com, the Canadiens had $49,786 of salary-cap space on Saturday morning.
