NHL Rumors: Montreal Canadiens, Calgary Flames, and Nazem Kadri

The Montreal Canadiens search for a center, and it’s too early for the Calgary Flames to move Nazem Kadri and others

TSN: Pierre LeBrun and Darren Dreger on the Montreal Canadiens search for a No. 2 center. If the Calgary Flames decide to move Nazem Kadri, would the Canadiens be fit for Kadri. The Flames are struggling, but they aren’t close to making that decision, and are a long ways away from making any big moves.

** NHLRumors.com transcription

Jeff O’Neill: “Pierre, I want to ask you about the Habs, and there’s talk about Nazem Kadri and what are the Flames going to do with him? How are the Flames, or the Habs going to approach getting that centerman? I know that there’s talk about the player that we just talked about, in Sydney Crosby, with this big picture thing, or be this fantasy world if they could get him.

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But are they like, kind of want to make a play now for that guy, or just the element of doing something as opposed to waiting around for something that might never be there?”

LeBrun: “Well, great tease, (Jeff O’Neill), to our Insider Trading segment. Darren Dreger has an update on Nazem Kadri in that segment. But to answer your question, the first thing I’d tell you is (O’Neill), my understanding is, listen, they’ve, they’ve gone through the entire league in their preparations internally, and have a list of what centers could potentially pop up between now and next season. And obviously, ahead of them are this year.

They’re, you name a name, and it’s come up internally with the Montreal Canadiens. And yes, Nazem Kadri gave me one of those names. I think the half would have interest in him if and when he became available at some point later in the season, because it’s still a need for them.

And what’s changed for Montreal, I’d say, from obviously years past, is now they’ve become one of the teams where a guy like Kadri, I think anyway, just me, views them now in a different light. Used to not be a team while they were rebuilding, or not really among the contenders, where a lot of guys would waive to and now I think they’re entering that world where they would be a team where a guy like Kadri would be willing to go at some point.

May not be him, maybe another player, but that’s that’s my sense of that one.”

Bryan Hayes: “Dreg’s, Calgary in town. They’re not, they’re not off to a good start.”

Dreger: “Awful. They have been. And that’s the primary reason why all of the speculation around Nazem Kadri is swirling about, right? It is in part because of the Canadian markets that could see a fit in Nazem Kadri, and right at the top of the list is the Montreal Canadiens, the Vancouver Canucks.

A return to Toronto, a long shot, but you could see it, right? You can envision the interest. Brad Treleving has expressed that interest in the past, and he will again.

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But it’s because the Flames are performing well below expectation. I mean, they probably should be closer to .500 or be a .500 team right now, and they’re not. But they’re a long way away from approaching Nazem Kadri and saying, ‘Hey, we’re all in it for McKenna and the ship is turning here.’ We can’t do that with the likes of you, Rasmus Andersson. Maybe (Mackenzie) Weegar. Jonathan Huberdeau gets a little bit more complicated, but that’s a long way away.

That’s a long way away and probably closer to the trade deadline. And you also have a Canadian owner, Murray Edwards, doesn’t play the tank game very well. It’s too expensive. At the end of the day, you have to stay as competitive.”

O’Neill: “What’s expensive about the tank game?”

Dreger: “Fans don’t want to watch it. They don’t want to come into your building. They don’t want to buy tickets. And you look at Detroit, it’s been in a rebuild for what, 9, 10 years?”

Hayes: “Buffalo too. How about Buffalo?”

Dreger: “You know, teams just don’t want to go through it. So I understand the speculation. We’re all a part of it. That’s what we do. Long way away from determining that Nazem Kadri is legitimately in play.”

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