5 best fits for John Tavares in NHL free agency

2. Montreal Canadiens

The Canadiens couldn’t catch a break this year. From the outset of the campaign, injuries decimated their roster. Carey Price, Shea Weber and Max Pacioretty all missed significant time with various ailments. There is hope for next year though. The team is only a year removed from a playoff appearance in which the only significant roster difference was Alexander Radulov. The Canadiens also put up a paltry shooting percentage of just 7.7, which should climb back closer to the NHL average next year. It’s not inconceivable that the addition of Tavares to a roster with a healthy Shea Weber and Carey Price could do damage.

A true, number one center has evaded Montreal for years. Marc Bergevin has so far failed at addressing the issue, and the Habs perplexing handling of Alex Galchenyuk hasn’t allowed him to grow in to the role. At just 27, John Tavares could be their white knight and save Bergevin’s job for at least another year. The general manager clearly believes this roster can win with a few tweaks, trading away super prospect Mikhail Sergachev for Jonathan Drouin, PK Subban for Shea Weber and signing Carey Price to a monster contract.

This year’s draft could provide plenty of excitement for Habs fans. If he believes they have a shot at Tavares, Bergevin may opt to dangle the third overall pick to secure more scoring help up front. With Pacioretty commanding a big raise next year, however, it seems likelier that the Habs will draft his replacement in either Filip Zadina or Andrei Svechnikov and attempt to deal second rounders (of which they have 4). With currently just over $12 million in cap space, Montreal will have to be creative on how they go about making a play for Tavares. Positionally this is the best fit for the Canadiens, but there may be too many other factors that prevent them from making a serious play.