NHL Rumor Mill – September 2, 2025
The latest on the Canadiens’ efforts to trade Carey Price’s contract, and an update on the Blackhawks’ blueline situation in today’s NHL Rumor Mill.
TVA SPORTS: Renaud Lavoie noted the path for the Montreal Canadiens to trade Carey Price’s contract is clearer after the latter received his $5.5 million signing bonus on Monday. However, moving that contract won’t be as easy as some believe.
Price, 38, is in the final season of his eight-year contract with an annual salary-cap hit of $10.5 million. He’s been on permanent long-term injury reserve (LTIR) since 2022. His actual salary for this season is $7.5 million, but he’s now owed only $2 million after getting his signing bonus on Monday.
Montreal Canadiens goaltender Carey Price (NHL Images).
The Canadiens are currently above the $95.5 million salary cap by nearly $6 million. With Price on LTIR this season, they will be cap-compliant, but cannot accrue cap space during the season.
Trading Price’s contract to a rebuilding team would put the Canadiens under the cap ceiling. That would allow them to accrue cap space to make other roster additions this season. Meanwhile, the rebuilding club could use Price’s cap hit to stay cap compliant if it shed salary this season by shipping out pending unrestricted free agents who no longer fit into its long-term plans.
Lavoie believes serious trade discussions could occur this week as NHL general managers meet in Detroit on Tuesday and Wednesday. With all teams sitting over the $70.6 million cap minimum for this season, Canadiens GM Kent Hughes would be at a disadvantage. Lavoie believes he might have to include a draft pick (perhaps a second-rounder) as a sweetener in the deal.
Some teams might be tempted to trade players quickly if they get off to a poor start this season. That would improve their chances of finishing low enough in the standings to improve their odds of winning the draft lottery and the opportunity to select generational prospect winger Gavin McKenna.
Those clubs might be more willing to take on Price’s cap hit to ensure they remain cap compliant.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Rebuilding clubs such as the San Jose Sharks, Chicago Blackhawks, and Pittsburgh Penguins have been mentioned as possible trade partners for the Canadiens. However, it could take some time to move Price’s contract.
Montreal Hockey Now’s Marc Dumont stated that some teams could need more time to put the finishing touches on their rosters for the coming season. He thinks it could be difficult to convince a club to absorb that significant cap hit once preseason begins.
BLEACHER REPORT: Frank Seravalli speculated last week that the Chicago Blackhawks could move a defenseman.
Servalli noted that the Blackhawks still haven’t signed restricted free agent defenseman Wyatt Kaiser to a new contract. The 23-year-old Kaiser is coming off his entry-level contract.
The Blackhawks are expected to sign Kaiser, but Seravalli wonders what they’ll do with their logjam of young defensemen. He pointed out that they have nine or 10 NHL-ready blueliners, and that could lead to one of them getting moved, though he doesn’t expect Kaiser will be the trade candidate.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: That young blueline includes Kaiser, Alex Vlasic, Artyom Levshunov, Sam Rinzel, Kevin Korchinski, Louis Crevier, and Nolan Allan. Levshunov, Rinzel, Korchinski, and Allan are waiver-exempt and can be sent to the minors if necessary.
Another option could be trading veteran blueliner Connor Murphy. The 32-year-old Murphy is UFA-eligible next summer and carries an affordable $4.4 million cap hit. He also has a 10-team no-trade list.
Lyle, again I have to ask – why do the Chicago Blackhawks keep being mentioned as a possible landing spot for Price’s contract?
They already have 1 more year of counting Shea Weber’s $7,857,143 cap hit to get them above the cap floor, while sitting on $18,662,024 in cap reserve and only D RFA Kaiser to sign – who shouldn’t even put a decent dent in that.
Clearly, I’m missing something obvious – enlighten me please. How, exactly, would Price’s contract factor in there this season?
The Blackhawks are above the cap minimum ($70.6 million) by just over $6 million. If they end up shipping out pending UFAs like Nick Foligno, Jason Dickinson, Connor Murphy, Ilya Mikheyev, Laurent Brossoit, and Sam Lafferty, it would potentially put them under the floor and thus not cap-compliant. Adding Price’s $10.5 million would cushion against that.
Or they can eat 50% the largest of those salaries, getting more in the trade and staying above the cap floor. They good also facilitate a 3 team trade where they eat half the salary for an asset. I doubt stating above the cap floor will be an issue. Only take Prices contract if you get something that makes it worth your time. I’m not a GM but I hang up the phone if it’s only a 3rd. Let some other team take on that contract for no real reason.
They can also get an extra pick(s) by trading for expiring contracts too? Even if the were to trade one, two or all of those you mentioned, I’m sure money would have to come their way and be compensated for doing that, on top of your ask as a return on them alone. Having cap is king.
Plus the Habs shouldn’t try to make the playoffs by acquiring a deadline asset. They are still far from burning assets to make pushes like that.
Wth,
50% of Foligno is $2.25m
50% of Murphy is $2.20m
50% of Dickenson is $2.125m
50% of Brossoit is $1.65m
Cost for Price contract is $800k
Hawks are better off dumping those contracts for draft picks for let’s say 2 third round and 2 fourth round picks
That makes it worth their time. It’s worth their time to add a 3rd round pick to get the contract.
Not sure how you don’t see that saving $8,225,000 and pocketing 3 draft pics at a cost of $800k isn’t advantageous.
You can say “no real reason” or not advantageous enough as a bargaining, negotiation stance but not objectively looking at the numbers.
I’m not saying they should jump on it but it’s worth seriously considering.
Hey Hab30, didnt realize Chicago were having financial issues. They probably are getting tired of being in the bottom of the league & that cap space could help them make some good acquisitions during the season. What if Bedard has a career year & a big piece becomes available during the year? A 3rd round pick to anchor your cap situation & torpedo potential big moves seems like a drop in the bucket to what would be needed to justify that at the start of a season.
Because if they trade players at the deadline . Murphy , Mickaev , Dickinson , Broisoit ,Foligno . They must still be above the cap floor after the trade deadline . So taking on Price and getting a pic makes sense for the Hawks .
Anyone who has faith that Arty Levshunov suddenly play a more discplined game from his call up at the end of last season must think the Blackhawks worked all summer at improving his recognition skills.
The seismic event last Spring was big Sam Rinzel arriving and playing ike he was plug and play top pair defender.
His pro play gave the two kids that need more time, Korchinski and Levshunov, more runway to improve with playing time in the Rockford AHL farm sandwiched around injury call-ups that would gauge where they are.
Back to Arty Levshunov:
The speed skill size is there as an NHLer. His shot and offensive attack abilities are ready. His natural skating speed & balance, is ready to do whatever is necessary to thwart attackers, but how he impulsively reacts and jumps away from responsibilities (in both ends of the ice) begs lack of reading and understanding what his team wants from him, especially in front of his goalies.
So, maybe Frank Seravalli feels the Chicago parent club will try and live with Arty’s game and refine it while he continue to match against quick opponents.
And in the cupboard is KK who is similar in that you could feel he can handle pro minutes, with NHL coaching improve on-the- job, but Neds the minutes the AHL provides him.
Kaiser, younger defenders and the teams’s trade Deadline decision on if Connor Murphy fits (stays) or goes.
Is “Blackhawk insider Frank Seravalli” speculations are that hometown lad Alex Vlasic is getting mentioned?
He did have some tough stretches during the past season, and I could understand his name can be whispered if it brings more scoring on the front end.
Honestly, unless the Habs are adding a player or pick, I don’t see the logic for another team. Blackhawks are deep with young players, so I would guess they would want a player upgrade to help the Habs clear the cap.
A team like San Jose might do it for a pick or prospect…maybe. All of these teams are going to want a guy 24 or under.
I know this is how things work, but it still doesn’t make a tonne of sense to me:
If I was an owner, I wouldn’t *really* want to pay even the necessary $800k on Price’s contract. The GM would have to do a good job proving to me that a 3rd round pick was worth nearly $1M of my money.
I know they’re all billionaires, but they probably still don’t want to “waste” $800k unless they were convinced to get that value and more in return. When few 3rd rounders (or even 2nd rounders) turn into impact NHLers for the club that drafted them, it still strikes me as odd that the owners would ok these trades; not the GM, but the owners.
I’m not sure which part you guys don’t understand.
As it stands they are unable to dump the players I used as examples who cost $8,225,000 in return for my conservative estimate of 4 draft picks.
You don’t need to be a billionaire to understand that retaining 50% on $16,450,000 , giving a cash saving of $8.225 million and conservatively speaking 4 draft picks for an investment of $800k And 1 draft pick is a good deal.
Then again it’s remarkable how many people have such a little understanding of money, exemplified by not understanding who pays the tariffs on imports and how it’s just a tax on final consumers.
Cap dollars > real dollars
My point isn’t about real money but cap dollars and how they can do it many other ways which might be better for them even if it is for just this year.
But who knows? They could be thinking something we never saw coming.
RM,
I’m not proposing that trading a 3rd round pick for Price’s contract is the BEST option for teams close to the floor.
We don’t know what GMs are juggling as they are talking with one another.
I’m just rejecting the nonsense that those teams have nothing to gain from this option and it’s just a favour to the Habs.
Brossoit could definitely be on the move if he is in fact healthy and passes the medical