Rejean Houle’s 3 Best Trades as Canadiens’ General Manager – The Hockey Writers – Montreal Canadiens

The Montreal Canadiens have a storied history but they undoubtedly went through one of their darkest periods around the end of 1990s. After missing the playoffs just nine times in their near 80-year history, the Canadiens did not qualify for the postseason in 1999, 2000 or 2001.

Missing the playoffs for three consecutive seasons was the result of a lot of poor decisions by general manager Rejean Houle. Patrick Roy, Pierre Turgeon and Mark Recchi were all traded away for minimal returns, plummeting the Canadiens into the abyss.

While Houle made some of the worst trades in the franchise’s history, not every single move he made was bad for the Canadiens. He was hired on October 21, 1995 and fired from the position on November 20, 2000. In those five years, there are not many fantastic trades that improved the fortunes of the Canadiens, but here are his three best.

Jassen Cullimore

Early in the 1995-96 season, Donald Brashear, a young enforcer on the team, was scolded by head coach Mario Tremblay at practice which resulted in some tension between the two. It wouldn’t last long as Brashear was traded just a few days later. In return, the Canadiens received Jassen Cullimore from the Vancouver Canucks.

Both players would go on to have long careers, but as depth pieces, in the National Hockey League (NHL). Brashear had scored 38 goals and 66 points in 62 games during his last year in the American Hockey League (AHL) with the Fredericton Canadiens, but was well on his way to being a full-time enforcer when the Canadiens traded him. In 111 games in a Montreal jersey, Brashear scored three goals and 10 points. He would finish his career with 1025 games played, 85 goals, 205 points and 2634 penalty minutes.

In return, the Canadiens added Cullimore, a 6-foot-5 and 235 pound defender to their back end. He was 24 years old at the time and had a long career ahead of him, but not much of it was destined to be played with the Canadiens. After just 52 games with the team, Cullimore was placed on waivers, and grabbed by the Tampa Bay Lightning. In an era where huge defenders thrived, Cullimore went on to play 812 games in his career and won a Stanley Cup with the Lightning in 2004, a year in which he suited up for 79 regular season games and another 11 in the playoffs. He had a lot of hockey left in him as a rugged, depth defender when the Canadiens traded for him, unfortunately Houle let him go for nothing in return a year later.

With other scrappers like Scott Thornton and Turner Stevenson, the Canadiens had other options for fighting forwards, not that they were at the same level as Brashear. You can debate which team got the better player in this deal, but you won’t be able to find three better trades made by Houle during his time as Canadiens’ general manager.

Dave Manson

The Canadiens snuck into the 1997 postseason with 77 points, narrowly edging the Hartford Whalers by two points for the final playoff seed. Their trade deadline acquisition that season was Dave Manson. He was a veteran of 10 NHL seasons and a tough-as-nails defender who could put up a few points as well.

Manson played just nine games with the Canadiens that season, and all five of their playoff contests. The following season would be his only full year in Montreal, and he scored 34 points in 81 games while piling up 122 minutes in penalties and making anyone who set foot near the Habs net pay. A two-way defender who could punish the other team with his physicality made Manson an effective player, and one of the best Houle acquired in his time running the Canadiens.

The Canadiens gave up Chris Murray and Murray Baron to acquire Manson. Baron was a 6-foot-3 physical defenseman who did not have as much offense to his game as Manson. Baron scored six points in 60 games with the Canadiens in 1996-97, his only one in Montreal. He would have six points in 45 games the season following the deal. Murray was a depth forward who had six points in 56 games with the Canadiens before the trade.

Sheldon Souray

Without a doubt the best trade Houle made with the Canadiens was one of his last. The Canadiens had a bit of a problem on their hands with defenseman Vladimir Malakhov. While he could be their best blue liner on many nights, he missed most of the 1999-2000 season with injury. While out of the lineup recovering from a knee injury, he was spotted skiing at Mont-Tremblant. He did not receive a warm welcome from Canadiens fans when he eventually returned to the lineup.

Malakhov was also set to be an unrestricted free agent that summer, and was looking for a big payday. Seeing the writing on the wall, Houle pulled the trigger on a trade with the New Jersey Devils. Malakhov would go on to help the Devils win the Stanley Cup that season, and then signed a four-year contract with the New York Rangers for a total of $14 million.

In return for an asset who would have walked that summer, and was in hot water for hitting the slopes while too injured to play hockey, the Canadiens acquired Sheldon Souray, Josh DeWolf and a second-round pick in the 2001 Draft. Souray was the crown jewel of the deal, becoming a fearsome force, especially on the power play with an incredible slap shot.

Souray scored 15 goals and 35 points in the 2003-04 season, 12 goals and 37 points in the 2005-06 season and blasted 26 goals and 64 points the following year. His defensive game left something to be desired, but Souray had a huge impact offensively, and that makes his trade the best one the Houle pulled off in his time as Canadiens’ general manager.

The Houle era is seen as one of the darkest in Canadiens’ history, and rightfully so. He is remembered for trading away future Hall-of-Fame players like Roy, Turgeon and Recchi and not getting impact pieces in return. However, not every move he trade was a bad one, as he came out on the winning end of these three deals.