Trade Alert: Columbus has a major trade in place and it's big news for Hughes and the Canadiens

Remember that they were asking for a 1st round pick, a 3rd round pick and another draft pick, in exchange for their solid defenseman.

We are waiting for the details, but there is a downside:

A file to be followed very closely, and this would be excellent news for Kent Hughes and the Montreal Canadiens.

According to several informants, including Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, several teams that were targeting Gavrikov could now focus on Joel Edmundson of the CH (and possibly David Savard as well).

To be continued, this file is still in development!

Gavrikov was Kent Hughes' main obstacle for other teams looking for a reliable, defensively solid and tough defenseman. Trading him could open up a lot of files for the Habs.

Gavrikov, 27, is a 6-foot-3, 221-pound defenseman. He has 10 points in 52 games this season.