Habs Send Playoff Hero to St. Louis for Prospects

TSN reports that the Montreal Canadiens have sent star goaltender, Jaroslav Halak, to the St. Louis Blues for prospects, Lars Eller and Ian Schultz. In Halak the Blues recieve a very steady goalie, who has shown that he is more than capable of being able to perform in high pressure situations. He is a young and solid goaltender who will be a very important piece of the puzzle for St. Louis.

Eller is a forward capable of playing both centre and left wing. At 6-1 and 192 pounds, he is not the big scoring centre that many were hoping the Habs would get for one of their goalies, but he could prove to be a valuable asset for the Canadiens down the road.

Ian Schultz is another young forward, listed at 6-2 and 205 pounds. Like Eller, he has definite promise for the future, but is not the type of player who will make an instant impact on a Montreal Canadiens team that is searching for toughness and scoring.

This seems to be a decent trade for both teams, with the St. Louis Blues looking for an alternative to Chris Mason, and the Habs getting a couple pieces for the future. I am little surprised at the timing of the trade though, as the Habs might have been able to drive up Halak's trade value heading into the draft. Regardless, Habs GM Pierre Gauthier must have a plan, and that plan clearly involves young goalie, Carey Price. It will be interesting to see how this trade affects player movement.