Ben Scrivens was acquired from the Edmonton Oilers on December 28 in return for forward Zack Kassian. At the time, Carey Price had been out for just over a month and the hope was that the MVP would soon be back.
We all know how the story turned out, and it's likely that the Canadiens knew more than they let on. In that case, they knew they needed to get Mike Condon some help. Dustin Tokarski was able to play well to a point in his time with the team, but it was clear he was no longer considered a viable NHL option.