Bryan Rust and Martin St-Louis feel like the cleaner Montreal match if the Canadiens really do turn to one of Pittsburgh's 2 wingers.
That is the part of Elliotte Friedman's note that matters most.
Not that Montreal likes a Penguin winger.
That the fit is specific enough that people around the league are already narrowing it to Rust or Rickard Rakell.
Rust is the one that makes more sense first.
Rakell is a good player and a real scorer. But if Kent Hughes is trying to build a line that can help Ivan Demidov right away, Rust feels more like the player who brings pace, pressure, and detail without needing the whole line built around him.
That matters in Montreal.
The Canadiens already have enough skill pieces to create offense. What they still need is another winger who can survive hard minutes, move around the lineup, and make a young line feel less fragile when the game gets heavy.
Rust checks more of those boxes than Rakell does.
He plays with more bite, he gets into more ugly areas, and he looks like the kind of winger St-Louis would trust fast.
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Rust would change the feel of a line more than Rakell would
That is the strongest angle here.
Demidov does not need another winger who wants the puck the same way he does. He needs someone who can hunt it back, keep the shift alive, and still finish when the play opens up.
Rust looks built for that.
Rakell might give you the cleaner offense-on-paper story. Rust gives you the line-driving support story, and that is probably more useful to Montreal right now.
There is also the roster balance piece. If Hughes adds a winger from Pittsburgh, he is not only chasing points. He is trying to make his top 9 harder to play against without slowing it down.
Rust fits that kind of move better.
The other reason this idea lands is Pittsburgh itself. Kyle Dubas and Dan Muse are still trying to sort out what this team is, and when a club sits in that kind of tension, veteran wingers always draw calls.
Montreal should be one of those teams calling.
Not recklessly. Not for a bloated price. But with real intent.
Because if the Canadiens are serious about helping Demidov and giving St-Louis another trusted winger, Bryan Rust feels like the kind of target who improves the room and the lineup at the same time.
Rakell would be understandable.
Rust feels smarter.
If the Canadiens target a Penguins winger, should it be Bryan Rust?
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