What will happen with Joel Armia? Will he play another season with the Montreal Canadiens or will he be traded to another National Hockey League (NHL) team?
• Read also: “The Canadian will buy out a contract this summer”
• Read also: Situation of the Canadian: between wishes and reality
Demoted to the Laval Rocket to start the last campaign, the Finn rolled up his sleeves and made a strong comeback with the CH at the end of November to finally end the year in Montreal.
What’s more, he scored no less than 17 goals in 66 matches, the best production of his career. He formed with Alex Newhook and Brendan Gallagher a trio with honest and sometimes even astonishing performances.
But we may have reached the limit with the 31-year-old striker. His four-year contract, valued at $3.4 million per season, expires at the end of the 2024-2025 season.
What can we expect from the Habs staff this summer in the case of this enigmatic and imperfect player? Here are the options.
Most likely
A transaction
This is the most likely scenario. It would be surprising if the Canadian retained the services of No. 40 so why not trade him when his value is at its highest level? The $3.4 million he pockets will also be much easier to collect by a team that makes his acquisition during the summer, especially since the salary cap must increase considerably for the next campaign.
The CH would always have the option of taking another contract in return or absorbing an amount from the agreement to facilitate the exchange. There is still one space in three left for Kent Hughes to absorb part of the contract of a player he trades.
We shouldn’t be surprised
We’ll put it back in the spring
With the brilliant second half of the season that Joel Armia had, the Canadian could be tempted to maintain the status quo and see if it continues next season. This could allow the team to keep his services until the trade deadline and get a little more in return.
Obviously, this is a gamble that could backfire on Hughes and his entourage, especially if he shows up to camp in the same shape he was a year ago.
Never say never…
A contract buyout
During the team’s end-of-season review, Hughes dismissed this option out of hand. Not just for Armia, but for all players under contract next year. It would therefore be very surprising if he went back on his word. However, such a turnaround would surely pave the way for something bigger…
We would fall out of our chair
A contract extension
Technically, CH could begin negotiations for a contract extension with Armia from 1er July. We say well, technically. Because that’s probably not going to happen.
