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'Patrik Laine is available for coaches' – Kent Hughes

Originally posted on Dose.ca | Last updated Mar 6, 2026 7:25 PM ET

That’s it!

The trade deadline has passed and the rumor mill will take a break for now.

What we can conclude from this fairly quiet deadline for the Canadiens is that no one is coming to town and no one is leaving Montreal… not even Patrik Laine. In fact, in his press briefing today, Kent Hughes confirmed that the Finnish player has never been a distraction and continues to be a valuable asset to the team. Kent Hughes

Obviously, the GM couldn’t say otherwise, but hearing him say that people like the Finn is good news. If Laine could return to 100% health, he could certainly help in certain circumstances, such as on the power play. However, that’s unlikely at this point.

He’s here until the end of the season (until proven otherwise), and Martin St-Louis will have plenty of options when it comes to putting together his lines.

I can’t believe we’re going to be talking about Patrik Laine until the end of the year. Will you play, will he play?

— Anthony Marcotte (@anthonymarcotte) March 6, 2026

Will he play? We’ll see. He is still under contract until July 1 and has a salary cap hit of $8.7 million.

Despite everything, Hughes confirmed to reporters that he is not afraid to pay and that he would have liked to improve the team, but the price was simply not logical for his team and for him.

At the end of the day, he may not have acquired the big names on the market, but he did acquire Phillip Danault at the beginning of the season for a second-round pick. If he had waited until March 6, he would have paid at least a first-round pick, that’s for sure.

In the end, the GM has a lineup he believes in and eight picks in the upcoming draft. This summer, he’ll have the tools to acquire the player he wanted to acquire today. Who knows?

Despite everything, there’s a lot of depth in the city right now, especially on offense.

Kent Hughes points out that Patrik Laine is part of the group and that his use is up to the coaches.

However, he has not yet been removed from the injured list.

After the deadline, teams can exceed the 23-player limit.

— Patrick Friolet (@PFrioletRDS) March 6, 2026

In quick succession

– Obviously.

#Habs GM Kent Hughes: “We’re not going to transact just to transact.”

— Priyanta Emrith (@HabsInHighHeels) March 6, 2026

— Indeed.

Hughes: We’ve been a pretty good hockey team since the 4 nations and we’re an even more confident group than we were last year. Says one of the things you can’t buy is experience, you need to give your young players some experience #GoHabsGo

— Karine Hains (@KarineHains) March 6, 2026

– Well done.