It's Pronounced "Et Le But!"

I forgot that Columbus had worn those red jerseys during the 2021 Reverse Retro season, but it may give you an idea of what Patrik Laine will look like in Montreal Canadiens' red after the winger was traded by Columbus to Montreal along with a 2026 second-round pick in exchange for defenceman Jordan Harris. Columbus retained none of Laine's contract, so the Canadiens are on the hook for Laine's $8.7 million deal for each of the next two seasons. Yes, this was a bit of a shock considering the return that the Blue Jackets got from Les Canadiens, but it seems both sides are happy with the results. And if Patrik Laine can find the same goal-scoring, highlight-reel form he had in Winnipeg, Habs fans may have another Finnish player to eventually honour alongside Saku Koivu.

There was no repairing the fractured relationship between the Blue Jackets and Laine, and general manager Don Waddell made that abundantly clear to everyone who asked. Laine wanted out of Columbus, Waddell was going to grant his wish, and the only thing to be determined was where he would land. Montreal became the answer on Monday afternoon, and his arrival in La Belle Province could be a huge add for the Canadiens if Laine's truly ready to play the game like he has in the past.

Some people will try to cast doubt on Laine's mental state after spending time in the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program, but Laine quickly made it clear in his video call that this move was something he sought to better his mental health.

"When you're not enjoying whatever you do, you're probably not going to be able to perform, and that's where I've been at," Laine clarified. "I haven't been enjoying myself for a while, but now I'm happier than ever, off the ice, obviously. I've done a lot of work on myself to to get me back to this point where I'm actually super excited about playing, in a new place, with new teammates, in a new city."

We've seen players make strides in reaching their offensive potential under head coach Martin St. Louis, and he's getting a bonafide shooter with Laine who could be the cannon from the wing on the power-play for the Canadiens just like Steven Stamkos was for the Lightning when St. Louis was playing. That's not to say that St. Louis won't try to unlock the rest of Laine's talents - skating, passing, defence - but it's clear that Montreal is getting a rested, reinvigorated Laine this season.

You may be wondering about the other side of the trade as Jordan Harris heads to Columbus, and there's no doubt that Harris is a solid contributor as a middle-pairing guy. Three goals and 14 points in 56 games with Montreal should keep him in the mix in Columbus, and the word out of Montreal is that Harris is a good community guy who likes to be out in city helping out charities and organizations. No team would see that as a negative, so it sounds like Columbus acquired a stand-up guy who will be good on the ice and with fans.

The bigger acquisition, though, might be the salary cap space they generated by trading Laine's large contract for Harris' smaller-valued contract. Columbus now has an estimated $16 million in cap space to play with this season, and they may want to start planning for the future with David Jiricek, Yegor Chinahkov, and Adam Fantilli all having one year left on their deals. With the flexibility acquired thanks to moving Laine's contract, all three of these players should be wearing Blue Jackets jerseys for a long time.

I want to make things clear here that we can prognosticate and predict which side won the trade, who got the better deal, and why Laine will reclaim his form in Montreal, but the truth is that no one can predict anything more than both players seem happy with their new teams and both teams seem happy with their new players. Normally, happy players produce more than unhappy players, so everyone is saying the right thing when it comes to this trade so far.

What I'm most happy about is that Patrik Laine sounded like himself again. This is a guy who battled his own demons and darkness and emerged happier than when he went into that darkness. Maybe things didn't go well in Columbus for a number of reasons, but his solution was to remove himself from a situation that he felt didn't help him. Seeing Patrik Laine smiling, taling about the game, and enjoying hockey again is enough for me to know this trade was good for him and his mental health, and it will be fun to see one of the best goal-scorers in the NHL doing what he does best again with his focus on playing the game again, not battling the darkness.

Everyone get ready to hear "...et le but!" a lot over the next few seasons because a refocused Patrik Laine could be trouble for a lot of opposing goalies! When asked by reporters about following in countryman Koivu's footsteps in Montreal, Laine answered, "I don't know if I'll be able to do as good as he did, but I'm going to try my best to be as good as he was in Montreal."

That's good enough for me, Patty. Here's hoping he has a great season in the bleu-blanc-et-rouge!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!