Major trade between the Montreal Canadiens and Nashville involving goaltender Yaroslav Askarov? It has just been claimed on BPM Sport radio waves

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Elias Edmonson
October 15, 2023 (12:14)

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Many speculations took place during the last NHL draft concerning the availability of goaltender Yaroslav Askarov with the Nashville Predators.

These rumors even involved the Canadiens as the new GM of Nashville, Barry Trotz, wanting to hit a home run during the event, allegedly offered the 15th and 24th selections in addition to Askarov, to Kent Hughes, in return for the 5th overall pick. We all know what happened next...

In the context of a long interview to talk about his goalies, Trotz somewhat confirmed that the Russian goaltender was not in the team's future plans. Indeed, he praised a few goalies in his organization, like Juuse Saros and Kevin Lankinen (Saros' backup), but Askarov's name was ignored.

"We are blessed to have had excellent performances in the Nashville net. It started with Tomas Vokoun. Then there was Pekka Rinne and we hope that it will be Juuse in the future and for a long time." - Barry Trotz

On the airwaves of BPM Sports, George Laraque took the opportunity to elaborate on the subject. According to him, the Canadiens have no choice but to go get Yaroslav Askarov.

"Askarov is a future number 1 goaltender. If you already have your number 1 goaltender, there's no point in keeping Askarov. You have to capitalize on him. That's why this summer, they offered him to all the teams to move down in the draft to have a pick sooner. They wanted a spectacular pick. Gonzo, he's definitely available, there are so many teams that need goalies." - Georges Laraque

"You know what that means, Gonzo? It means that the Canadiens have no choice but to go get him. Now, the discussions are over, they have to go get him. With Askarov and Montembeault, the next ten years in the nets, you're okay." - Georges Laraque

The former NHLer is sure that the rebuild in net would be a thing of the past and that the CH's future at this position would certainly be assured. But Hughes will not be the only GM looking to acquire the goaltender if that's really what Nashville wants. The battle will therefore be big, and the price to pay will certainly be high.

The Russian goaltender only has one NHL game experience. It was precisely against the CH last season, and it ended in a loss for him. He stopped 31 out of 35 shots directed at him, finishing the game with a save percentage of 0.886. In 48 games in the AHL with the Admirals, he amassed a record of 26-16-5, averaging 2.6 goals against and a save percentage of 0.911.

An interesting fact about Askarov, he still has two seasons on his NHL entry contract, at $925,000 each, and does not have to go through waivers, unlike Cayden Primeau, to go to the AHL. The young man of only 21 years old therefore still has a few years of development ahead of him.