Speculation: [Offseason 2024] Sam Girard, trade candidate?

[The Devilish Buffoon]

EDIT: Seems like I was off the mark with Girard as a potential fit to MTL, not sure the conversation is so productive or worth having. I do, however, think there's a scenario where Colorado could be looking to move Girard next offseason.

Girard is bit of a controversial player and has been supplanted quite clearly by Toews. If Colorado is able to re-sign Toews, it seems like Girard may be the one to go in order to make room.

Who would have interest in Girard? What would his value be like? What alternatives are there if Toews is re-signed beyond trading Girard?

Original Post:

This all hinges on Colorado being able to re-sign Toews at a workable amount... but, if they do, could Girard to MTL make sense after this coming season?

Montreal should have a few cheap bottom of the lineup guys that they can offer up next year, potentially including Pezzetta, Harris, Kovacevic, Pinard, etc, as well as a healthy collection of picks. They only really have two guys right now who can be counted on as longterm, big-minute NHL DMen in Guhle & Matheson, and there isn't a ton of puckmoving ability on the back-end. Obviously Reinbacher will address both of those needs, and Harris, Barron, Xhekaj, Trudeau & Mailloux have all shown flashes of NHL ability, but not to a degree that a player like Girard couldn't be a help. Girard isn't a horrible defensive player, either, by any means... just has issues with certain types of players.

There is also the Quebecois aspect which, while some might mock, is a very real thing... especially when the guy in question can actually play.

Girard is a solid player but I am not sure the cap will open up enough for there to be significant demand. Montreal is a team that could fit him and seems like they could use him.

What do Avs, Habs, and impartial fans think? Am I missing something, or is there a pretty decent fit here?

Click to read more...

 

[Jared Dunn]

Hutson looks like he's going to be a better version of Girard so don't think there is a fit unless you're practically giving him away

Thankfully I don't think Hughes and Gorton are overly concerned with the Quebecois element

The D core in 3 years will ideally be:
Hutson-Reinbacher
Guhle-Mailloux/Barron
Xhekaj-anybody

 

[Mighty Makar]

It would have to be for futures.

 

[Zegs2sendhelp]

Hutson looks like he's going to be a better version of Girard so don't think there is a fit unless you're practically giving him away

Thankfully I don't think Hughes and Gorton are overly concerned with the Quebecois element

I remember a few years ago when Canadian fans said mete looks like he’s going to be a better version of hampus lindholm

 

[Jared Dunn]

I remember a few years ago when Canadian fans said mete looks like he’s going to be a better version of hampus lindholm

I remember making stuff up too and/or attributing one stupid comment to the whole fanbase

Go take a peek at Hutson's numbers and how they compare to guys like Fox, Makar, Hughes etc in college

 

[Nevins]

Nope

 

[Leon Lucius Black]

If the Habs were close to making the playoffs, I would have some interest as Girard would be an upgrade to their D right now.

However we are going to suck for a while, so I'd rather give Guhle/Barron/Harris/Xhekaj the minutes this year and then wait and see how Reinbacher/Mailloux/Hutson/Engstrom turn out in the next couple of years.

 

[yianik]

I don't think any of the mentioned players will interest the AVs, given they are all bottom players, except for possibly Harris. And Habs aren't moving a 1st.

 

[Mrfenn92]

Don’t see the habs going after him

 

[The Devilish Buffoon]

If the Habs were close to making the playoffs, I would have some interest as Girard would be an upgrade to their D right now.

However we are going to suck for a while, so I'd rather give Guhle/Barron/Harris/Xhekaj the minutes this year and then wait and see how Reinbacher/Mailloux/Hutson/Engstrom turn out in the next couple of years.

FWIW this is for after the coming season. If the young guys progress well, it would definitely take the wind out of the sails of this idea... but Barron, Harris and Xhekaj have a lot to prove before they can reliably take on more than bottom pair minutes.

I don't think any of the mentioned players will interest the AVs, given they are all bottom players, except for possibly Harris. And Habs aren't moving a 1st.

Do you think Girard would return a 1st? 2nd + cheap depth with maybe a mid pick on top seems fair to me, but I'm not a fan of either team

I remember making stuff up too and/or attributing one stupid comment to the whole fanbase

Go take a peek at Hutson's numbers and how they compare to guys like Fox, Makar, Hughes etc in college

This is really pre-mature, man. Especially since 3 of the top 11 U19 D seasons since the lockout came last year - none of them from high drafted players.

Hutson is a super impressive young player and I believe in him, too, but college production is not always a predictor of NHL success. Hell, I remember a 6'4 Sens D prospect, Patrick Wiercioch, going PPG in his 18 yr old season. We all thought he was can't miss. We were wrong.

 

[Michoulicious]

This all hinges on Colorado being able to re-sign Toews at a workable amount... but, if they do, could Girard to MTL make sense after this coming season?

Montreal should have a few cheap bottom of the lineup guys that they can offer up next year, potentially including Pezzetta, Harris, Kovacevic, Pinard, etc, as well as a healthy collection of picks. They only really have two guys right now who can be counted on as longterm, big-minute NHL DMen in Guhle & Matheson, and there isn't a ton of puckmoving ability on the back-end. Obviously Reinbacher will address both of those needs, and Harris, Barron, Xhekaj, Trudeau & Mailloux have all shown flashes of NHL ability, but not to a degree that a player like Girard couldn't be a help. Girard isn't a horrible defensive player, either, by any means... just has issues with certain types of players.

There is also the Quebecois aspect which, while some might mock, is a very real thing... especially when the guy in question can actually play.

Girard is a solid player but I am not sure the cap will open up enough for there to be significant demand. Montreal is a team that could fit him and seems like they could use him.

What do Avs, Habs, and impartial fans think? Am I missing something, or is there a pretty decent fit here?

Nope.

 

[Boss Man Hughes]

I don't think any of the mentioned players will interest the AVs, given they are all bottom players, except for possibly Harris. And Habs aren't moving a 1st.

Harvey-Pinard isn't a bottom player. He might be capable of scoring line duties.
I would trade futures for Girard if they were 3rd round picks or lower.

 

[Nico Cauzuki]

Hutson looks like he's going to be a better version of Girard so don't think there is a fit unless you're practically giving him away

Thankfully I don't think Hughes and Gorton are overly concerned with the Quebecois element

The D core in 3 years will ideally be:
Hutson-Reinbacher
Guhle-Mailloux/Barron
Xhekaj-anybody

Engstrom will be better then half of those guys

I remember a few years ago when Canadian fans said mete looks like he’s going to be a better version of hampus lindholm

idk who you talking about but most Habs fans saw Mete has a decent #5/6

 

[sansabri]

small dman who shoots left? no thanks

 

[TT1]

Already have Hutson and Harris, not a fit.

 

[StewieP19]

Hutson looks like he's going to be a better version of Girard so don't think there is a fit unless you're practically giving him away

Thankfully I don't think Hughes and Gorton are overly concerned with the Quebecois element

The D core in 3 years will ideally be:
Hutson-Reinbacher
Guhle-Mailloux/Barron
Xhekaj-anybody

That's a Big gamble
3 gus on your top 4 never play a NHL game.

 

[habsfan44]

I remember a few years ago when Canadian fans said mete looks like he’s going to be a better version of hampus lindholm

I find it hard to believe that any fan would compare 5'9'' Mete with 6'3'' Lindholm .

 

[1909]

Girard is not an option anymore for MTL. Their new D is pretty much set, and a small talented guy like Hutson should do at least as good as Girard, if not way better, down te road. Plus Girard is carrying a huge contract. Habs got lots of good depths on D now in the pipeline.

They missed the boat on a local player by letting Dubois go to LA., a guy that would had helped this team a lot on the top six.

 

[John Mandalorian]

NYI might make more sense. I’ve seen comments about how they could use a puckmoving D.​

 

[HockeyVirus]

What are the Avs paying to dump Girard?

 

[pth2]

As a Habs fan, I don't see a fit. I expect the Habs to be moving D for forwards, not flipping anything for D other than depth guys.

 

[Pierce Hawthorne]

I find it hard to believe that any fan would compare 5'9'' Mete with with 6'3'' Lindholm .

I mean, you've got a Montreal fan in here comparing Hutson to Makar/Fox... It certainly isn't a leap to believe Habs fans in particular would make that kind of comparison with Mete a few years ago.

 

[Captain Mountain]

This all hinges on Colorado being able to re-sign Toews at a workable amount... but, if they do, could Girard to MTL make sense after this coming season?

Montreal should have a few cheap bottom of the lineup guys that they can offer up next year, potentially including Pezzetta, Harris, Kovacevic, Pinard, etc, as well as a healthy collection of picks. They only really have two guys right now who can be counted on as longterm, big-minute NHL DMen in Guhle & Matheson, and there isn't a ton of puckmoving ability on the back-end. Obviously Reinbacher will address both of those needs, and Harris, Barron, Xhekaj, Trudeau & Mailloux have all shown flashes of NHL ability, but not to a degree that a player like Girard couldn't be a help. Girard isn't a horrible defensive player, either, by any means... just has issues with certain types of players.

There is also the Quebecois aspect which, while some might mock, is a very real thing... especially when the guy in question can actually play.

Girard is a solid player but I am not sure the cap will open up enough for there to be significant demand. Montreal is a team that could fit him and seems like they could use him.

What do Avs, Habs, and impartial fans think? Am I missing something, or is there a pretty decent fit here?

I mean, both Matheson and Guhle play the same side as Girard would ideally. Half of Montreal's top prospects are also D (Reinbacher, Hutson, Engstrom, Mailloux), and Harris had an encouraging first full pro season and is a LD.

Montreal is also in the middle of a rebuild, if Montreal really cared about having a veteran D-man that could move the puck, they would have kept Petry. They're clearly more interested in getting ice-time for Guhle, Harris, Xhekaj and Barron.

The Habs are generally willing to pay to bet on young guys (Dach, Newhook), but I think there needs to be a bit of a feeling of untapped potential, draft/prospect pedigree, and plays a position/role that Montreal doesn't have in their prospect pool. Girard is relatively young, but he is who he is, his play has been slipping for a couple of seasons, and he doesn't really address a hole in the prospect pool. Girard just isn't worth anything to them right now and probably isn't worth anything to them next off-season either.

(I'm not going to even go into how Girard's "analytics" have fallen off a cliff since last season because I don't have any great insight on why that happened)

 

[Pierce Hawthorne]

What are the Avs paying to dump Girard?

Nothing. He certainly isn't a cap dump, even if his contract isn't the steal it originally looked like it would be. A Top 4 guy making $5M through his prime is still solid value.

 

[Captain Mountain]

I mean, you've got a Montreal fan in here comparing Hutson to Makar/Fox... It certainly isn't a leap to believe Habs fans in particular would make that kind of comparison with Mete a few years ago.

Are they saying that Hutson will be as good as Makar/Fox? Or are they saying to look at his college numbers relative to Makar/Fox?

Because it is WAY too premature to suggest anything like the former, but its just factual to point out Hutson had one of the best offensive seasons for a college D-man in the last 40 years.