Episode 224 of the Hockey Free For All Podcast 07-31-2026

Hello hockey fans Episode 224 of the Hockey Free For All Podcast has arrived. Take a listen to this week’s topics that include- #1. Montreal trades 24-year-old 5’ 09 175-pound forward prospect Sean Farrell to Anaheim. #2. Montreal Acquires 23-year-old 6-foot 183-pound right wing Sasha Pastujov from Anaheim. #3. Montreal Canadiens Director of player Development Adam Nichols thought extremely highly of Sean Farrell, so this is a very intriguing trade in many ways. #4. Stop! Montreal does not need Kirill Marchenko. He is not the perfect addition to or fit in Montreal’s top 6.  #5. The Montreal Canadiens have a lot of and the internal talent and prospects in the league, hands down! #6. The Montreal Canadiens have drafted exceptionally well and far better than anyone else multiple years! #7. Prospect Michael Hage, center at Michigan University, and Alexander Zharovsky, a winger in the KHL are the last 2 pieces of the top 6 in Montreal, no one else. #8.  Macklin Celebrini has signed a new 5-year, 94-million-dollar contract with an annual cap hit of 18.8 million. I’ve but wow and that’s just nuts! But so are the new contracts of Leo Carlsson and Connor Bedard.  #9. The Short-term mind-blowing excessive contracts that have been handed to Macklin Celebrini, Leo Carlsson and Connor Bedard right after the 3-year entry deals conclude, have league destruction ramifications. #10. The cap is not and will not rise even remotely at the rate contracts are. #11. The top 2 defensemen and top 6 forwards will eat up 80% plus of team’s caps coming sooner than you think and it’s not good at all. #12. No one is the NHL today is even remotely on the same level of ability and skill of Mario Lemieux, Mark Messier, Wayne Gretzky or Jaromir Jagar. No one else even comes close. #13. I’ll take Mark Messier, Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux or Jaromir Jagar over Maklin Celebrini, Leo Carlsson, Kirill Kaprizov or Connor Bedard any day. #14. Has everyone just completely forgotten about or written off the excellent regular season that Oliver Kapanen had, like it never happened? #15. It would be very surprising if Kirby Dach amounts to anything more than a top 9 winger in what will likely be his last season with Montreal unless something drastically changes. #16. Why can’t Oliver Kapanen continue to build on and remain the team’s 2nd line center? #17. Here’s an even better question. Why is Alex Newhook not the obvious choice as the team’s number 2 center? #18. Alex Newhook had a tremendous start, return from injury and was clearly one of Montreal’s top 3 players in value and production in the 2025/2026 playoffs! #19. Don’t like those options, platoon or alternate Danault and Evans #20. That doesn’t even include Florian Xhekaj, Owen Beck, Vinzenz Rohrer or Jared Davidson?