Let's make no mistake: since their arrival with the team, they've been among the club's best defensemen, although this aspect of the Canadiens' game has been lacking for the past two years. We're talking about David Savard and Michael Matheson. Although both men are very reliable, the CH's defensive succession is very strong, and this could force Kent Hughes to deal with his veterans. That's what Arpon Basu of <i>The Athletic</i> has to say. <q>The 2024-25 trade deadline looks very interesting. If David Savard is still around, he'll more than likely be available as a rental player, and Mike Matheson will have another year left on his contract, making him an attractive market value with a very affordable contract.</q> Basu mentions the trade deadline in 2025, so two seasons from now. The youngsters who were rookies last year, will be made well established and more prospects will arrive with the team. A lot can change in two years, so don't take it for granted. What's more, especially in Matheson's case, he's clearly the club's best defender and he proved it during the 2nd half of last campaign. We'll see what Kent Hughes' plan is, but keeping a veteran is never a bad idea. <blockquote class=twitter-tweet><p lang=en dir=ltr>Canadiens mailbag part one, on expectations for Slaf, managing the prospect pool and more. Part two comes out later this week. <a href=https://t.co/zAR7EHMd8i>https://t.co/zAR7EHMd8i</a>- Arpon Basu (@ArponBasu) <a href=https://twitter.com/ArponBasu/status/1686045982197161984?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw>July 31, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src=https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js charset=utf-8> <a href='https://www.marqueur.com/news/index.php?no=261768' class='lien_marqueur' target='_blank' rel='noopener'>Credit: Marker</a>