Habs Trade Target: Robert Thomas

During the World Juniors back in December, I wrote about how an NHL scout compared Hage to Robert Thomas’ game. The more time goes on, the more this statement kind of makes sense, as they were both very solid offensive prospects whose stocks went up following great World Junior performances in the year that they played for Canada. They were also both known more for their playmaking abilities than their scoring prowess.

As good as Thomas was during his World Junior stint back in 2018 as Canada’s top playmaking centre, Hage’s performance of 13 assists and 15 points blew Thomas’ 5 assists and 6 points out of the water. In fact, I remembered Thomas’ tournament looking much better than those stats show, although in reality Thomas was also a year younger than Hage for his tournament, so we could assume that Thomas would have been around as dominant as Hage the next year had he played as a 19-year-old. Nonetheless, it’s evident as a strong playmaker Hage is on track to having a similar career to Thomas. Some may even say that Hage is on track to being better than Thomas at this stage of his development.

With that being said, it makes sense that the Blues want Hage at all costs for Thomas in any package that the Habs have, given that he could be the perfect replacement for their current #1 centre. However, on the flip side, trading Hage for Thomas may end up being a sideways move for the Canadiens even straight up, as Hage is close to being a similar player to Thomas today within the next 2-3 years. For a team just exiting a rebuild, the overall window of contention is starting to open up, and the Habs will be able to keep it open longer with Hage than Thomas down the line. On top of that adding a player like Kaiden Guhle or Adam Engstrom to make the deal happen would just be a deal that the Habs would be doomed to lose in the long run.

In reality, it seems like the Habs management wouldn’t be willing to give up Hage in a deal for Thomas anyways, but maybe they can negotiate down to a different starting point, such as one of their high-end defensive prospects in Adam Engstrom or David Reinbacher, along with Oliver Kapanen, to make something work for both sides.

All in all, it seems like a pipe dream that the Canadiens could get Thomas without Hage right now, but through negotiation anything can happen, given that the Habs have other really good prospects and 1st round pick that can help make the deal happen. Having Thomas behind Suzuki in the Canadiens’ depth chart would do the team wonders. It would allow both top lines to have a dangerous playmaking centre that will cause fits for opposing teams on a nightly basis. It’s just for the potential that Hage brings as being that guy as well; in the near future, it doesn’t seem worth adding a 70-75 point guy for someone that should be that plus more assets on top of it. With that being said, the Habs should find a way to get Thomas without sacrificing Hage.