Patrik Laine, 2nd Round Pick Traded to Montreal Canadiens

Just several days after it was made apparent that Patrik Laine did not want to play in Columbus, Don Waddell granted his wish to get a change of scenery.

Patrik Laine was dealt to the Montreal Canadiens along with a 2026 second round pick for defenseman Jordan Harris. The 26-year-old Finn has two years left on his current contract at a $8.7 million cap hit, and no salary was retained on the deal.

Patrik Laine’s future with the Blue Jackets has been in turmoil, which further sparked fire into the conversation when Waddell told TSN 1050 in Toronto that the scoring winger was not wanting to play for Columbus anymore.

“We want players that want to be Blue Jackets and Patrik made it clear that he thought a change of scenery was best for him,” said Waddell. “We were able to acquire a good young player in Jordan Harris while maintaining financial flexibility in this deal which was very important to us. We wish Patrik all the best.”

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1 In Patrik Laine, Montreal Canadiens Land Former 40-Goal Scorer

In Patrik Laine, Montreal Canadiens Land Former 40-Goal Scorer

Montreal Canadiens fans are happy with what they are getting, for very good reason. In Winnipeg, Patrik Laine looked like the electrifying goal-scorer that he was hyped up to be, and one of the first true stars in the franchise’s history. His time there, however, ended earlier than expected, and while his first and last seasons in Columbus were forgettable, he did put up 108 points in 111 games while putting up better two-way metrics than anticipated. He was on the way to blossoming into a true power forward before a collarbone injury and a stint with the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program limited him to 18 games in 2024.

While Montreal’s young duo of Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield have been leading the way, Laine can add to the top six core, with his trade request out of Columbus being fulfilled. The big question about Laine is staying healthy and maintaining his consistency. Laine has dealt with injury issues throughout his career, which offsets his ability to be a game-changer. There is risk here, especially given there is no salary retained on this trade. It cannot be denied, however, his scoring prowess and the talent he has on getting chances off the rush.

It’s still hard to imagine that the Blue Jackets had to pay a second round pick to move Laine, but it’s a reality here. Not only this, but the Habs pick up their 15th pick in the first four rounds of their two Drafts. They are building what could potentially be one of the strongest forward cores in the NHL, between Suzuki, Caufield, Patrik Laine, Juraj Slafkovsky, Kirby Dach, Alex Newhook, and Ivan Demidov. Even if Laine doesn’t return to full form in Montreal, it will hardly derail the Habs’ efforts to build a playoff contender. If he does, playoff hockey could be back in Hockey’s Mecca sooner than later.

Blue Jackets Open More Room for Youth Movement

The Blue Jackets are in a transitionary phase after hiring general manager Don Waddell. After they hired former Wild head coach Dean Evason, Waddell traded away one of his best players, though this trade opens up more room for young forwards like Kirill Marchenko, Yegor Chinakov, Cayden Lindstrom, Gavin Brindley, Kent Johnson, and the recently re-signed Cole Sillinger. Laine now becomes the newest addition of star players to leave the Blue Jackets, joining the likes of Artemi Panarin, Sergei Bobrovsky, and Rick Nash. More unfortunate is that Columbus paid to both acquire him and trade him away.

However, this is for the best for both parties, as Waddell gives Laine the freedom to get a change of scenery without holding onto salary. What makes this more of a one-sided trade, however, is that he had to part with a second round pick in this deal. If it was the only way to get Laine off the books, that meant that Columbus was losing a significant piece of draft capital.

None of this is to degrade Harris, though he’s an interesting addition for the Blue Jackets. He’s been a solid third pairing option for the Canadiens in the past two seasons. His opportunities, however, were limited because of the logjam of defenders in the Montreal system, which includes Arber Xhekaj and Justin Barron. He may not have the same upside as David Jiricek and Denton Mateychuk, but Harris showed he can handle an NHL environment, and is better than other borderline NHL players fans in Columbus had to watch.

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