After the dust had settled from the second day of the 2018 NHL Entry Draft, the Montreal Canadiens made their second deal of the day with the Edmonton Oilers, this time shipping out NCAA goaltending prospect Hayden Hawkey in return for a 2019 fifth-round pick.
The #Oilers have acquired goalie Hayden Hawkey from @CanadiensMTL in exchange for a 5th round selection at the 2019 #NHLDraft. Hawkey went 24-12-3 with a 2.04 GAA & .919 save % as a junior with @FriarsHockey in 2017-18. pic.twitter.com/gbUzqAn9cM
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) June 23, 2018
Originally drafted by the Canadiens in 2014 in the sixth round , 177th overall, Hawkey has just completed his junior year for the Providence Friars. With a total record of 48-24-8 in three seasons for Providence, Hawkey was a more-than-capable goaltender in the pipeline for Montreal. However, the emergence of Cayden Primeau, Charlie Lindgren, Michael McNiven, and Etienne Marcoux now in the picture, the space for the former draft pick was extremely crowded.
His rights were not set to expire this off-season as he is heading back to Providence for his senior year between the pipes. This does clear some of the aforementioned congestion in the pipeline for the Habs, who can now focus on sorting out roles for their currently signed netminders.
