It is a strange scenario. He wants more then they are willing to offer. Bergevin also shopped him around several times and didn't get any offers. I see him walking in the offseason if he does not want to bargain or negotiate. Unfortunately for him he will either retire greedy or take a pay cut. Danault really is not that good. Only reason we pay him what we do is because he is a home town boy. On any other team that does not mean squat and they pay you based on your performance. His performance is lackluster at best.
No one wanting him is a big part of the problem. This leaves management with the ultimate negotiation tactic and upper hand. He really has no leverage here to play with aside from his French name. He is not showcasing his talent, raising his game or even making a case this season. I am pretty sure at this point if we could have traded him for a bag of pucks we would have. No one is willing to even part with used pucks for a center who can't crack 25 of the current teams rosters. Some Hab fans will try to tell ya he is worth it because he is a great "Two way player" But he is not. Two way players win some games and score some goals. They win faceoffs. They also kill off penalties and help the goalie. Danault does none of this good. The Francophone say he is underrated. The Other fans say he is greatly overrated. If he had a English name he would be benched, traded to Ottawa for some museum tickets or in the minors.
Unless The Kraken are hard up and have some fresh new NHL money to throw at him, I really can't see any team paying that for Danault. Let alone Montreal. A name can only get ya so far. To put it in perspective the Habs management was claiming to keep him around because he is good mentor for the youth. Basically this guy got into a Plekanic scenario 10 years before Pleks did. We treat him like some old withered veteran who is only there to guide the youth. The guy is not even 28. That should tell ya something about his career. He is done like a burnt turkey on thanksgiving. No one wants a cut of that dry meat. Not even the dogs under the table.