According to a report by Sportsnet's Eric Engels, Jonathan Drouin is officially on the trading block. Engels says he received a text from an Eastern Conference Executive Wednesday night who told him "[Drouin's] name is definitely out there."
Engels says Montreal's patience with the 24-year-old forward is "wearing thin if it hasn't run out completely." Drouin was acquired for defenceman Mikhail Sergachev in the summer of 2017 and was quickly made the Habs top-paid forward, with a six-year contract that carries a $5.5 million AAV. While showing flashes of the talent he has, Drouin's two year run with the Canadiens so far has been mostly disappointing. He put up 99 points and a minus-36 rating over 158 games. In this year's preseason, Drouin has seemed non-existent at the best of times, and a liability at the worst.
Engels says Drouin's selling point is probably low at the moment, perhaps so low that the Canadiens may have to hang on to him in the hopes that he can quickly switch things around. That isn't a good position for the player or the team to be in. Engels speculates that if Drouin doesn't improve quickly, management may "view the scenario of trading him as an addition by subtraction."
Drouin was a third overall pick of the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2013 and seemed to have all the makings of an offensive force in the NHL. With the Halifax Mooseheads of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, Drouin had back-to-back seasons of 100+ points in fewer than 50 games. However, many like to point out that may have had a lot to do with playing on a line with Nathan MacKinnon, who was selected first overall by the Colorado Avalanche in the same draft year as Drouin.
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Meanwhile, the team has placed five players on waivers Thursday, including Matthew Peca, Philip Varone, Karl Alzner, Xavier Ouellet and Dale Weise. If they clear, all will be assigned to the Laval Rocket of the AHL.
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