Marc Bergevin’s long-standing mantra has been that you can never have too many defencemen, and that holds true with his acquisition of Nikita Nesterov from the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Montreal Canadiens’ GM had also mentioned he was in the market for a puck-moving defenceman, and for the cost he found a steal in Nesterov. Going back to Tampa Bay is Jonathan Racine and a 2017 sixth-round pick; essentially nothing in return for an NHL-calibre player.
What this likely means is that one of Mark Barberio or Zach Redmond may start to feel the heat for their lineup spot.