Earlier today I explored the option of exchanging Tomas Kaberle for Pierre-Marc Bouchard. While that one may be a stretch, this idea by comparison is nuts. But it could possibly work.
The Canadiens have piles of money to burn, and an extra amnesty buyout, so the have the option of trading Tomas Kaberle for someone who’s more expensive who could help short term, who they could buyout in the summer anyway. This brings one option especially to mind, and that’s Danny Briere.
Hold on, calm down, I know we all hate him. I know he’s an inferior David Desharnais who’s more expensive. Calm. Down.
Remember how I said the Habs could buy out someone more expensive than Kaberle? Daniel Briere has two more seasons left on his contract with a cap hit of $6.5M a year, but the salary is only $3M and $2M in those years. That means that all in all, he’s just a tad more expensive to buyout than Tomas Kaberle is.
WIth that said, it would be the Habs taking on the bigger burden, so instead of having to throw in a pick to make the other team bite on it, a pick would likely be coming the Canadiens’ way to entice them into it.
Like Bouchard, Briere has the Francophone factor that makes the move slightly more attractive than if he were named Daniel Smith. He’s a more dynamic player than Bouchard though, and adds significantly more scoring.
Briere is by no means an excellent player, but he’s a proven playoff scorer, someone who’s streakiness is just the kind of thing that can make a difference in a tight series.
Briere can’t play a tough minutes role, but he’s been effective in the past when hidden behind two effective lines. He could do some serious damage on the wing in easy minutes like Desharnais gets.
Here’s the hitch though, Briere is currently on the injured reserve with a concussion. So like I said, this one is even less likely than the last. There’s a real chance that even if the trade for an injured player were allowed to go through, he may never play a game this year. Even worse, the Canadiens could be on the hook for him for another year if he remains injured in the summer.
Also, Daniel Briere is a douchebag, so there’s that.
