Patrik Laine chose Montreal as his team over a Western Conference foe

Finnish winger Patrik Laine finally put a number of months of speculation to rest after he was dealt by the Columbus Blue Jackets, who flipped him to the Montreal Canadiens in return for young defenseman Jordan Harris and a 2026 second-round draft pick.

Patrik Laine had struggled mightily with Columbus, and a change of scenery was in order. The Blue Jackets granted his trade wish by shipping him to Montreal, but they were not the only team in pursuit of his talent.

In an interview recently with La Velle E. Neal III of The Minnesota Star Tribune, Minnesota Wild General Manager Bill Guerin came forward to declare that the Wild were also after Patrik Laine. However, the 26-year-old opted out of that and Neal suggested that Minnesota might have been on Laine's no-trade list.

Had Patrik Laine joined the Wild, he'd have immediately found himself part of a rising star cast with Matt Boldy and Kirill Kaprizov that could have been the difference for coach John Hynes. Still, there would appear to be some rationale behind Laine's decision to block his move to the Wild, as he likely felt the Canadiens seemed positioned for growth over the next couple of seasons.

Finally, now that the trade is done, Patrik Laine can focus fully on his 2024-25 season with the Canadiens. Indeed, he's skating already with some of his new teammates at the practice facility the Canadiens use.

Montreal's top-six forwards can make serious impacts this season. A playoff berth may be a stretch, but a good season with hopes of fighting for a wild card well into March would be progress in the saga known as the Montreal Canadiens rebuild.

Source: Blades of Steel
Patrik Laine reportedly rejected a trade to Western Conference team this summer