After a summer of flux, it looks like the Montreal Canadiens may not be done making moves. General manager Marc Bergevin tells RDS’s Francois Gagnon that the team has been taking offers on 23-year-old defenseman Nathan Beaulieu.
While they aren’t actively shopping him, they’ve been receiving calls and are listening to offers.
Translated by Sportsnet’s Eric Engels, Bergevin said: “My work consists of making the team better. Nathan [Beaulieu] isn’t an item in the window (meaning, he’s not shopping him), but I’ve received calls and I’m listening to what other teams have to offer. It’s my job to listen and analyze. Nathan is a good young player. We’re not sure yet what his specific niche is in the NHL. If I want to make my team better, I have to move players that have value. It’s exactly what I did when I traded P.K. [Subban] to get our hands on a guy like Shea Weber. You don’t get anything for nothing in the NHL.”
It’s a frank statement from the Montreal GM and the most intersting part may be that Bergevin doesn’t see how Beaulieu fits into the lineup currently.
I have 23 eye witnesses that think differently 🤔 #IsItOctoberYet https://t.co/KVMWH96Pjj
— Nate Beaulieu (@natebeaulieu) September 14, 2016
Beaulieu tied a career-high of 64 games last season, contributing two goals and 17 assists, both career-high marks as well. He also posted a -1.59% adjusted CF%Rel while averaging a career-high ice time of 17:27. He has one-year remaining on a contract carrying a cap hit of $1 million.