2021 NHL Draft: Canadiens trade the 126th and 127th picks
The Habs have once again elected to punt a pick into 2022, also adding some later selections this year in a separate trade.
The Montreal Canadiens have again traded a pick into next year’s draft, this time moving the 126th selection to the Tampa Bay Lightning in exchange for a
MON 2 trades: 126 to TB for a 4th in 2022. And, 127 to MIN for 150 and 214
— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) July 24, 2021
Once more, the Habs move a pick to get another selection in their home draft in 2022. I like these moves as this is considered to be a stronger draft class and it will be on home soil, so it makes sense for the teams to want to stack picks in that class.
They also acquired picks 150 and 214 this year in a separate trade with Minnesota for pick 127. This one is a little more perplexing, but maybe they see some guys sliding that they like, so they’d prefer to move back and have two picks to play with instead of reaching for someone on their list.
The Habs will now wait until pick 142 before their next crack at selecting a player, if they choose to do so.