It is a small audio segment slipped at the end of the episode of so hockey, in Radio-Canada, which launched a rumor as attractive as it is improbable: should the Montreal Canadian be interested in Nazem Kadri?
Marc Antoine Godin asks the question: “Why not Kadri?” »»
And suddenly, some supporters are getting excited. But the truth, cold, is that the Habs don’t want Kadri. And even clearer: the flames do not want to move it.
Let’s start with the base. Nazem Kadri is 34 years old. He has four seasons at $ 7 million a year. He has a complete non-movement clause until the summer of 2026.
Clearly, he chooses if he leaves and where he leaves. And everything indicates that he is happy in Calgary. According to information from Darren Dreger (TSN), the flames do not plan to exchange it at all.
The Montreal Canadian, meanwhile, already manages a tight salary ceiling. He invested heavily in Noah Dobson ($ 9.5 million), Patrik Laine ($ 8.7 million), which he also tries to liquidate, and he will soon have to renew Lane Hutson this summer, then Ivan Demidov next summer.
Adding Kadri would be condemned to sacrifice young talent … for a risky bet.
Suppose for a moment that Calgary really wants to move Kadri. What would we ask in return? A productive veteran of 67 points in 82 games, still robust, snarling, and excellent in series, does not leave for nothing. We could easily imagine a price of the type:
A choice of first round in 2026.
Joshua Roy, even a higher hope in the hierarchy (Adam Engstrom)
Full support for the contract.
Does Kent Hughes want to sacrifice this for a 34-year-old transition center with the average size, which will slow down in two years and be affected by the development of a certain Michael Hage?
The heart of the Canadiens’ strategy is not to get a veteran to plug a hole, but to develop Michael Hage as the future second center.
Internally, this is the priority mission of 2025-2026, according to the words of Martin Lapointe. And if the project works, Hage would become the ideal line partner for Ivan Demidov from 2026.
Lapointe is clear: Hage has all the technical skills to play in the NHL. His intelligence, his vision, his washer protection, his “hidden shot”, everything is there.
“He has all the skills to be a center player. When he defends in his area, he must work as if he had the washer. »»
For him, the challenge is clear: transforming Hage into a full, responsible center, and capable of supporting Ivan Demidov in the medium term.
It is therefore no coincidence that CH is betting on its development, rather than closing the contract at $ 28 million in Nazem Kadri.
According to the co-director of recruitment, it is the game without the washer that still prevents the CH from giving it a place in the alignment now.
This season at the University of Michigan is therefore his last chance to transform raw talent into a polished diamond to sign his entry contract next April and joins the CH before the series.
By betting on Kadri, Kent Hughes would potentially affect the progression of only hope capable of filling this hole in a sustainable and economical way. This would go against the entire patient development plan for three years.
Why Radio-Canada is launching this idea?
This is the real question. Why does this suggestion only come from Radio-Canada, while TSN, Sportsnet, The Athletic, TVA Sports and the US Insiders have never seriously mentioned Kadri in Montreal?
Because it is an attractive idea on paper: a veteran who supported Montreal Enfant, because it was his father’s team.
But rumor lacks transactional substance, wage logic and strategic alignment.
On the one hand, Kadri would be a natural fit in Toronto for a homecoming. The Maple Leafs are looking for a support center behind Matthews and Tavares, and Kadri knows the house. If there is a team in the NHL with more chances than Montreal to get their hands on Kadri, it’s Toronto.
On the other hand, Montreal is not ready to burn its future to win a dozen more regular games.
We are talking about a contract that would bring Kadri to 38, with a style of playing physically. If the flames want to get out of it one day, it must be done with salary retention.
But sacrifice Joshua Roy Roy and a first round choice for a 34 -year -old worn center, no thank you.
It must be repeated: CH did not find its second center this summer, despite the rumors surrounding Mason MCTAVISH, Anthony Cirelli, Ran Strome, Nazem Kadri (now) and even Sidney Crosby.
The market for autonomous players was skinny. Kent Hughes studied all the options, but did not want to overpay. He knows that a bad signature would block young people and would harm the wage structure.
In the meantime, he counts on Kirby Dach to return to health and fulfill this role temporarily. But everything is based on Michael Hage.
The summer of 2025 will have proven one thing: the second centers are recalled or paid at major prices. Kent Hughes preferred to bet on development. And it places it against the grain of certain media, which are looking for “Crunchy” names to fill the hours of radio or the Balados.
Radio-Canada can dream of Kadri. But in the Canadian’s offices, the dream is elsewhere: he wears a jin in the University of Michigan, his name is Michael Hage, and he represents the future of the club at the center.
Kadri? It is a prestigious name, a name of the past, a name that no longer frames with the current philosophy of CH.
And that’s exactly why only Radio-Canada still believes in it.
