Montreal has lost eight of its last ten games leading up to the 4 Nations break, narrowing their chances of making the playoffs. The Canadiens enter the hiatus with a 25-26-5 record and 55 points, six behind the Detroit Red Wings for the second wild-card berth in the Eastern Conference.

Pierre LeBrun from TSN revealed that negotiations between Jake Evans and the Canadiens are not progressing. After the game against the Lightning, Evans spoke about his time with the Canadiens in the past tense,

Jake Evans is a UFA after this season. Now, with the Four Nations event about to begin, this gives the player and the Montreal Canadiens 13 days of negotiating during this break in the NHL season. According to Pierre LeBrun,

Talks between the Montreal Canadiens and Jake Evans are not going well, and a trade could be imminent. According to one insider, the two sides are far apart in terms of what an extension looks like, and the forward is likely to be dealt as a result.

Due to a 1-6-1 record through their last eight contests, TSN’s Pierre LeBrun believes the Canadiens have repivoted toward trading Jake Evans at this year’s trade deadline.

Did Jake Evans play his last game in Montreal? At this point, the question clearly arises. In light of his comments from yesterday, where he spoke about the Canadiens in the past, one can clearly wonder what this means for the future.

Evans has a 51% face-off percentage and that’s good for a contending team if they are looking for a fourth-line center. He’s not a 3C on a good team, which mitigates his value a bit but signing him with the cap up will guarantee that he gets more than he’s worth down the line.

We’re just over five weeks from the NHL’s March 7 trade deadline and we’ve got you covered at Daily Faceoff with at least one trade-focused story every day until Deadline Day.