The Winnipeg Jets have added depth down the middle.
The Winnipeg Jets have acquired veteran centre Sean Monahan from the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for a 2024 first-round draft pick and a conditional third-round pick in 2027, the team announced Friday.
Monahan, who stands six feet two and weighs 202 pounds, has 13 goals and 35 points in 49 games this season, his second with the Habs. He has also won 55% of his faceoffs over the last two years.
Winnipeg Jet general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff says he’s looking for Monahan to add a strong presence to the faceoff circle and its defensive backend.
“He’s a true professional, and one of his strengths is faceoffs,” Cheveldayoff stated during a Zoom media availability.
“It’ll help the other guys as well because sometimes in games when faceoffs are going in the wrong direction, all it takes is one guy to tip it the other way.”
Monahan, the former sixth overall pick, spent the first nine years of his NHL career with the Calgary Flames until being traded to Montreal in August 2022. His debut season with the Habs was cut short due to a groyne injury.
Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes denied that Monahan’s injury history played a role in completing the move ahead of the NHL trade deadline.
“Any time you go through this process you try to understand the market, you try to understand who is or may be interested in the services of, in this case, Sean Monahan, what the upside would be and you measure that against the risk of any player,” he said.
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