Bottom Six Minutes: Evgenii Dadonov is on the right track

The Montreal Canadiens may have ended their winning streak in service of extending that belonging to the New Jersey Devils, but it wasn’t all a waste for the home team. Sure, they did waste an excellent first period in the subsequent 40 minutes, but one of their most obvious trade deadline chips finally found the scoresheet.

I am of course referring to Evgenii Dadonov.

While this goal was the result of a lucky bounce, it was also a product of his overall performance with the Canadiens. He was quietly effective during their winning streak, and arguably deserved to find the scoresheet much earlier than he did. If the bounces had gone his way the last few weeks, he could be higher on their current scoring list.

When the Canadiens acquired him from the Vegas Golden Knights, it was blatantly obvious that he wouldn’t be staying in Montreal long term. The eventual reality of him playing for another team either involves him playing his way into a trade, or finding a new home in the next offseason. For the Habs, the ideal scenario is the former, as they need every asset they can get to fuel their rebuild.

There is a small problem in that Dadonov occupies a lineup spot that could potentially be of use for Juraj Slafkovsky. The young Slovak also played well against New Jersey, and appears to deserve a promotion in the lineup. It will be a delicate balancing act for Martin St-Louis moving forward, as he needs to be able to showcase his trade pieces while also affording opportunity to the team’s first-overall draft pick.

It won’t be easy, but as long as Dadonov keeps playing as he has, it appears that he has enough game left in him to entice someone to pick up the phone and dial Kent Hughes’s number.

Click the play button below to listen to your full Bottom Six Minutes, also available on your podcast platform of choice. We will return after this Thursday’s Habs visit to Ohio to face the Columbus Blue Jackets.