Canadiens trade Johnathan Kovacevic to Devils for draft pick

Habs GM Kent Hughes opens spot for younger defenceman and acquires fourth-round pick in 2026 NHL Draft in exchange for 26-year-old.

Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes announced Sunday afternoon he has traded defenceman Johnathan Kovacevic to the New Jersey Devils in exchange for a fourth-round pick at the 2026 NHL Draft.

The 26-year-old Kovacevic is heading into the final season of his three-year contract with a salary-cap hit of US$766,667. The Canadiens claimed the 6-foot-5, 223-pounder off waivers from the Winnipeg Jets shortly before the start of the 2022-23 season.

Kovacevic played 62 games with the Canadiens last season, posting 6-7-13 totals while averaging 16:31 of ice time per game. His plus-11 differential was the best on the team.

With an abundance of young defencemen, the Canadiens no longer had room for Kovacevic on the blue line. He was made a healthy scratch for 12 of the Canadiens’ last 28 games last season, including the season finale. There’s a good chance Montreal would have ended up putting Kovacevic on waivers before the start of next season, in which case they would have received nothing in return if he was claimed by another NHL team — which would have been almost certain.

“At the end of the day, you can only control what you can control and that’s what I’ve been doing,” Kovacevic said late in the season when asked about being made a healthy scratch. “I’m proud of my work ethic and how I’ve played. You can make a mistake here and there, but sometimes it’s just the business. They want other guys to play, so it is what it is.

“You want to play,” Kovacevic added. “I’m a hockey player at the end of the day. That competition is what gets us going. It gives you purpose, it makes you feel alive in a way. It’s unfortunate but, at the same time, you can only control what you can control.

Kovacevic remained a great teammate whether he was in the lineup or not and was very well-liked in the locker room. He had a close relationship with fellow defenceman Arber Xhekaj, since they both grew up in Hamilton. Xhekaj, who is eligible to become a restricted free agent on Monday, received a qualifying offer from the Canadiens on Sunday in order to keep his rights. They did the same for defenceman Justin Barron, who is also eligible to become a restricted free agent. The Canadiens did not give qualifying offers to forward Jesse Ylönen or defenceman Mattias Norlinder, allowing them to become unrestricted free agents.

“These guys are my teammates, not my competitors,” Kovacevic said near the end of last season when asked about the competition for playing time. “I’m competing with myself … that’s the way I look at it. I know what standard, what level of play I want to aspire to and play to. Part of me, being the best player, best teammate I can be is helping these guys raise their game. Helping other people feel comfortable makes you feel better, too. It just makes you play for something bigger than yourself because I’m playing for us to get a win. You’re always cheering for your teammates and when you play for something bigger than yourself that’s when I think you can really get better, too, because you don’t have an ego about it. You’re not getting in your own way. You’re just doing whatever it takes to help the team win. And usually what it takes to help the team win is playing your best.