The Montreal Canadiens traded their longest-tenured player to their most bitter rival on Sunday.

 

Tomas Plekanec will don a Toronto Maple Leafs jersey as the Habs received a second-round draft pick, defenceman Rinat Valiev and forward Kerby Rychel in return for the centre. 

Addressing Montreal media on Sunday afternoon, Plekanec praised the city which he's called home for the past 15 years. 

 

"My kids go to school here, their first language is basically French," he said. "I can't thank the fans enough. I enjoyed every second. It's a cliche for some people but it's so true that the Montreal Canadiens fans are unbelievable."

 

Toronto sits second in the Atlantic Division and with young stars like Auston Matthews, could be poised for a deep playoff run. For the 35-year-old Plekanec, the trade is an opportunity to take a deep run at the Stanley Cup. 

"You get to the playoffs and anybody can win it these days," he said. "Especially Toronto, with the talent they have on that team. The organization is all winners, they've all won the Stanley Cup before, they won the Olympics and I'm very excited to be part of that."

The Leafs also erceived forward Kyle Baun in the deal.

Plekanec was drafted in 2001 and has played every game of his NHL career with the Habs. In 981 career games, he has posted 232 goals and 373 assists. In recent years, his offensive games has slowed; so far this year, he has just six goals and 18 assists in 60 games. 

 

TSN 690 radio host Mitch Gallo said he wasn't shocked by the trade, which was rumoured for weeks. Plekanec is in the final year of a two-year contract and will become an unrestricted free agent on July 1. 

"Marc Bergevin's job is to get assets right now," said Gallo. "Plekanec, unrestricted free agent, they could have lost him for nothing, they get some assets in return in the trade, so it makes a lot of sense for the Canadiens to move him."

Plekanec didn't dismiss the idea of returning to the Canadiens when his contract expires.

 

The most notable return for Plekanec is the second round pick. The trade gives the Habs four picks in that round of the draft, having also acquired a pick from the Chicago Blackhawks in the trade that also brought in centre Philip Danult in exchange for Dale Weise and Tomas Fleischmann. The Habs also received a second-round pick in this year's draft in the trade that sent Lars Eller to the Washington Capitals. 

 

Valiev was selected by the Leafs in the third round of the 2014 entry draft. He has mostly played for the Toronto Marlies, the Maple Leafs' American Hockey League affiliate. This year, he has posted five goals and 10 assists for the Marlies in 40 games. 

Rychel, who was taken in the first round (nineteenth overall) by the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2013, has scored 10 goals and 20 assists in 55 games for the Marlies this season. He has two goals and 10 assists in 37 NHL games, all played for the Blue Jackets. 

Baun played five games in the NHL for the Chicago Blackhawks between 2014 and 2016, posting no points. In 54 games for the AHL Laval Rocket this year, he has scored four goals and added 12 assists.