The Right Canadiens Trade Target Is Wright

It was the stare seen all across Montreal back at the 2022 NHL Entry Draft. The Canadiens were hosting and had the first-overall pick, Shane Wright having been at the top of many draft rankings heading into the event. When he fell to the Seattle Kraken at No. 4, the frustration appeared to get the better of him when he seemed to make eye contact with those sitting at the Habs’ draft table after having finally heard his name and made his way on stage.

Canadiens Now Have a Reputation Too

“Seemed” is key, though. For many Canadiens fans, the stare somehow spoke volumes of Wright’s character or lack thereof and was all they needed to justify the team picking someone else. That’s been reinforced by rumours of him having interviewed poorly with the Canadiens. However, if you’re going to judge teenaged prospects based on their job-interview skills, maybe the judgment should be equal-opportunity in nature and go back in the opposite direction based on the odd questions the Habs have developed a reputation for asking.

In any case, there isn’t any actual proof a malicious stare was Wright’s intent. Secondly, even if there was, had the Canadiens been picking Wright at No. 4 instead of the Kraken, the narrative suddenly flips and he is no longer a kid with immaturity issues but a gamer with a chip on his shoulder.

What a great pick! See how easy that was?

Thirdly, after multiple instances in team history of prematurely trading away Hall of Fame talent for fairly idiotic reasons (if you don’t think Patrick Roy at Age 30 applies here, try Guy Carbonneau at Age 34 on for size), you’d think fans would give an 18-year-old the benefit of the doubt. Granted, Wright still has a great deal more to prove than either of those players, has never worn a Canadiens jersey, and thus is no one Habs fans have loyalty to in any form.

Wright Now Available?

Regardless, four years later, you’d hope Canadiens fans would be able to look past the perceived slight, especially when, according to rumours, he’s available on the trade market (and technically has been for some time) and the Habs have a need for a second-line centre… still. Considering in 2022 the Habs didn’t have one, effectively Wright’s projected floor, there was every reason to believe they would pick him. Instead, general manager Kent Hughes thought outside the box, taking winger Juraj Slafkovsky, while also trading for then-21-year-old Kirby Dach, who had been drafted to play centre by the Chicago Blackhawks third overall in2019.

Obviously, similar to Wright, Dach hasn’t worked out as hoped either. While the Canadiens just extended the now-25-year-old restricted free agent a qualifying offer, he has been relegated to the wing, while initial injury concerns that originated during his time with the Blackhawks have come to be justified. He has yet to play a full 82 games while failing to score above 38 points in any one season. Thankfully, Slafkovsky is coming off a 30-goal, 73-point season and seems to be living up to his No. 1 overall billing (or would be were it not for teammate Lane Hutson, who got picked at No. 62 that year and obviously won the Calder Memorial Trophy in 2025).

So, all in all, Hughes deserves top marks for making the right pick, although Logan Cooley, another centre, wouldn’t have been a bad one either, after having established himself as a mainstay at the top of the Utah Mammoth’s lineup. Despite having been taken just one pick earlier than Wright, his early-career numbers have dwarfed the latter’s. However, with Wright playing just 13:48 per game this past season (compared to Cooley’s 17:20 and Slafkovsky’s 18:32), it’s hardly an apples-to-apples comparison, especially with the Kraken seemingly having fallen into the trap of trying to recapture their early success of making the playoffs in their second season by overly relying on veterans since, when their veterans haven’t exactly been top-end.

Reason to Buy Low on Wright

Not for nothing, but Wright had a pretty good 2024-25, when he put up 19 goals and 44 points, one more than the 43 Matty Beniers, the franchise’s first-ever draft pick at No. 2 in 2021, scored. Slafkovsky meanwhile scored 18 goals and 51 points, one fewer goal and just seven more points, despite playing over three more minutes per game (both over 79 games).

Obviously, Wright’s 2025-26, in which he regressed to 12 goals and 27 points, tells a different story. However, that’s probably the reason he’s reportedly available and why the Canadiens should enquire as to what it would take to acquire him four years after nearly making him the first-overall pick.

There’s no denying Wright’s drop in production is problematic, as is his inefficiency at taking faceoffs. As a result though, you’d probably be looking at a significantly lower eventual price tag than the first-round picks it took to pry 23-year-old centre Mason McTavish away from the Anaheim Ducks a few weeks ago. Based on the red flags in McTavish’s game, all that might just contribute to Wright being a safer bet.

Some rumours about Mason McTavish potentially being on the move (MTL?). He's still young and has some promising small-area skill, but his lack of footspeed, defensive involvement, and limited time with the puck are all red flags. pic.twitter.com/S0JkIhcij5

— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) June 13, 2026

Compared to in 2022 when he appeared to be just that to the Canadiens, Wright is admittedly by no means a perfect fit. However, there aren’t any perfect solutions at this point either. Just like four years ago, it’s likely going to take some out-of-the-box thinking on the part of Hughes to find this team a viable No. 2 centre. Knowing what everyone does now, he picked wisely in 2022, but, in a situation where Wright would have arguably been put in more of a position to build on his successful 2024-25, it’s easy to envision a reality in which Habs fans are cheering on the guy at this point instead of using, let’s be honest, silly excuses to dislike him. If a sensible opportunity to acquire him arises him in the near future, they still can.