by Marc Lescoutre , Vodcast Producer, All Habs Hockey Magazine

OTTAWA, ON – I’m back folks! My Habs Banter co-host Corey Desormeaux fired up a solid effort with last week’s Mail Bag, and if you were hoping to see him again this week, worry not, as we are practically the same person (beards and all).

https://twitter.com/lescooter/status/714635465366888449

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Do you have a question or a topic you would like us to discuss? Okay, here’s what you can do.

Let us know:

1. who you are
2. where you’re from
3. if you wish, send us a photo of you in your favourite Habs gear
4. who’s your favorite player, present or past
5. and of course, your question

You can contact us via Twitter, our Facebook page or send an email.

We’ll feature you, and your question, in the All Habs Mailbag!

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@lescooter @FlyersRule @AllHabs what are the chances Bergevin will "buy low" on Yakupov ?

— Blain (@BlainPotvin_THW) March 28, 2016

I’m not sure if I’m in the best position to comment whether Marc Bergevin WILL trade for Nail Yakipov this summer, but I do think the the Habs GM will attempt to go after the former first-overall pick.

While the buzz surrounding Yakupov ahead of the deadline was widely reported, it came out this week that the 22-year-old Russian winger actually requested a trade ahead of the February 29th deadline and received permission to speak to 8 teams.

Nail Yakupov: 'I asked a trade and #Oilers gave a permission to speak to other teams, about 8 of them were interested, but smth went wrong'

— Igor Eronko (@IgorEronko) March 27, 2016

Montreal was one of the teams said to be in the mix at the time, so I would imagine the club will remain interested as we head to the off-season. As for buying low, I certainly hope that would be the case. Up to this point in his career, Yakupov has struggled to consistently put the puck in the net, and his skill-set off the puck means he lacks any real impact if he’s not putting up good numbers. Here’s hoping for a good deal, and that a fresh start might be what he needs to get his career going.

https://twitter.com/jazzyjay47/status/714508240562819072

Nathan Beaulieu has had a bit of an up and down season with the Habs, with stints on the top pairing with PK Subban in the best of times, and some games spent in the press box. While it’s hard to be too hard on one player, especially one that’s still developing during a season as bad as the one the Habs have had, but I think the one thing stopping Beaulieu from being a serviceable top-pairing defenseman is consistency.

The Habs 2011 1st round draft pick is a strong skater and a fair bit of offensive upside. When playing with confidence, he shows a strong first pass and the ability to carry the puck himself out of the zone. He’s even willing to drop the gloves to stick up for himself and his teammates.

Despite all of the good, Beaulieu had trouble at times this year with horrendous turnovers and generally inconsistent play at both ends of the ice. Given that he’s still only 23, played up and down the lineup for much of the season, and battled injuries at times, I’m pretty confident that as long as he keeps on his current trajectory, he should be able to make a career as a decent top-two d-man or above average top-4.

https://twitter.com/keels3838/status/714613350806659073

First off, thanks for the question. Good to see I have some followers from other teams around the league. As I can see from your twitter avatar, you are a) a Sens fan, and b) don’t know how to set up a profile picture properly. Now to your question.

Just when I thought I had the easiest question ever, you went and added that caveat. Imagine Erik Karlsson and PK together on the same powerplay? That would be electric. 5-on-5 might be another story though. I digress.

If I could take one player (aside from Karlsson), I think it would be Mike Hoffman (although I have to admit it was close between him and Mark Stone). While I’m aware of his defensive deficiencies, Hoffman possesses great speed, a nose for the net, and has put up solid numbers in his first two full seasons in the NHL (back-to-back 27 goal seasons). The Habs should have a top-6 scoring forward on their wish list and I think he would fit the bill nicely. Despite a solid first full season in 2014-15, the Senators were hesitant to sign Hoffman to anything more than a 1-year deal. That makes him a restricted free agent this offseason. Offer sheets aren’t used often, but I wouldn’t be shocked for a team (hopefully the Habs) make a run at him either via offer sheet or a trade.

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Don’t forget to shoot your questions Corey’s way and he’ll answer the best ones in next week’s edition of Mailbag, and look out for the next episode of the All Habs Video Podcast Habs Banter which will go live next Monday!