There is a reason why the Canadiens got Patrik Laine at a discount

When Kirby Dach returned to play, we thought it was important to give him some time. After all, coming back from a knee injury isn’t exactly easy in the NHL.

And clearly, his start to the season has been… difficult.

It’s not always easy for the center right now, and we can wonder, at this point, how much longer we can still attribute this to his injury, especially now in February.

The same question arises for his trio partner, Patrik Laine.

Laine was acquired from the Blue Jackets at a discount (the Canadiens only gave up Jordan Harris to receive Laine at 100% salary and a second-round pick) because he is not a perfect player.

Recently, he has shown this: it’s difficult for him.

When he isn’t scoring on the power play, it doesn’t hide his shortcomings and lack of effort. His game is really not perfect at five-on-five (Laine has acknowledged this since his first games with the Canadiens), and yesterday, Martin St-Louis had enough: he benched him.

Invisible, Patrik Laine was limited to one shift in the 3rd period in Anaheim!https://t.co/YCkjVUlSSW pic.twitter.com/IePLuETany

— RDS (@RDSca) February 3, 2025

Seeing a guy dragging his feet doesn’t sit well.

Of course, we shouldn’t be surprised that such a situation has arisen. He was dragging his feet in Winnipeg, he was dragging his feet in