The Montreal Canadiens are going to be a team to watch this off-season. After making it to the Eastern Conference Final this year, the Canadiens should be looking to add to their roster.
The Canadiens have a few roster needs heading into the off-season. One of them is a top-four right-shot defenseman.
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The trade market has an interesting potential option to consider in Buffalo Sabres defenseman Michael Kesselring.
Kesseling has been the subject of trade rumors since the end of the season. This is because the big right-shot defenseman has become the odd man out on the Sabres’ blueline. This was made clear when the Sabres only played him in one playoff game this spring.
Kesselring was also never able to get things together this season with the Sabres, too. He only played in 34 regular-season games this year for the Sabres, where he had just two assists. While it was a tough year, he is a prime bounce-back candidate, and a defenseman who the Canadiens should consider taking a flier on.
Kesselring has shown in the past that he can be an impactful top-four defenseman when playing at his best. Just back in 2024-25 with Utah, the 6-foot-5 blueliner set career highs with seven goals, 22 assists, and 29 points in 82 games. He also had five goals and 21 points in 65 games for the Arizona Coyotes during the 203-24 season. With this, it is certainly fair to wonder if he could bounce back if given a fresh start on a team like the Canadiens.
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Kesselring’s age also adds to his appeal, as he is entering his prime years at 26 years old. With this, he could be a good fit on a Canadiens club that is on the rise if he bounced back.
It will be interesting to see if the Canadiens make a push for Kesselring this summer. He could be a good player for them to take a chance on if he is made available by the Sabres.
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