The Montreal Canadiens defense was a weak point for the squad last season, especially down the stretch in the postseason in their series vs the Washington Capitals.
This is why they have made it a priority to upgrade the blueline this summer, in order to give support to their Calder winning defenseman Lane Hutson. The big move being the Noah Dobson trade with the New York Islanders.
It's possible the Canadiens are not done making additions to their D core. While significantly upgraded, as their top 4 currently projects the team could use another star defenseman back there. Cole Shelton of Heavy Sports has a mock trade that sees the Habs add a sought after stud defenseman from a rival Canadian organization.
Montreal acquires: Rasmus Andersson
Calgary acquires: Josh Anderson, Jayden Struble, Adam Engstrom, 2026 1st rounder, 2026 2nd rounder
Why would Montreal make this trade?
By adding Andersson to the right side of their defense the Canadiens top 4 D core would consist of Guhle-Dobson and Hutson-Andersson. This could have the potential to be one of the best defensive units in the NHL and come in handy in the playoffs when defense makes the difference. Plus, the Habs lose a bad contract in Josh Anderson along the way to make the cap situation work. Montreal does have to give up quite a bit of future's assets and draft capital. But with where the team is at now coming out of the rebuild and looking to make their mark as a contender, that is a worthy package to part with.
For Calgary, a Rasmus Andersson departure has been deemed inevitable by insiders and media alike. The best course of action for the Flames is getting a deal done sooner rather than later. They do not want to deal with this drama in-season if they can avoid it. The trade return is solid compensation for losing their top defenseman. They might be the losers of this hypothetical trade in the short term, but it could come back the other way for them in the long haul.
We'll see what, if anything, the Canadiens do to make further moves to their roster as the 25-26 season soon gets underway. If there's a team(s) that seems prone to further activity, the Habs appear to be one of them.