Possible TRADE incoming between Montreal Canadiens and Colorado Avalanche

Unfortunately for them today, it was announced that Gabriel Landeskog will miss atleast the next 3 months after undergoing surgery on his knee.

Gabriel Landeskog had knee surgery yesterday and is expected to miss 12 weeks. #Avs— Peter Baugh (@Peter_Baugh) October 19, 2022

The departure of their captain leaves a large hole in the lineup that is currently being filled with rookie Martin Kaut, a 2018 16th overall pick by the Avalanche, who has spent the last few season in the AHL.

If Kaut doesn't work out, the Colorado Avalanche could look for a trade to improve this position as they will have the cap space with Landeskog on LTIR.

One team that a sports reporter is suggesting is a trade with the Montreal Canadiens, who are looking at doing the opposite of the Colorado Avalanche. While the Aves are looking to repeat, the Canadiens are hoping to finish near the bottom of the standings this season for a chance at Connor Bedard. The Habs have a few players they could shed that would benefit the Avalanche, and this reporter believes they should be interested in Mike Hoffman.

Might I interest the Avs in a gently used Mike Hoffman? https://t.co/HBoLDAubOp— Scott Matla (@scottmatla) October 19, 2022

Hoffman is a pure goalscorer, but his poor defensively play may turn the Avalanche away from him. Another reason they might pass on Hoffman is he has another year remaining on his deal after this season and with MacKinnon's new large contact kicking in next season, they wont have the cap space.

The smarter option would be Jonathan Drouin. He is in the final year of his deal, which if the Avalanche offer enough, the Habs would most likely be willing to retain salary. Drouin makes $5,500,000, so if they could get someone of his calibre at a $2,750,000 cap hit, it could be an absolute steal.

One other benefit of Drouin over Hoffman is the Avalanche's star forward Nathan MacKinnon already have some chemistry with Drouin from their time playing for the Halifax Mooseheads and Team Canada at the World Juniors. They made magic happen and even won the Memorial Cup together, this could be a match made in heaven.

The Avalanche have all of their 1st round picks and could easily make something happen that would intrigue the Habs who are in the process of a rebuild.