The Vancouver Canucks began their rebuild last season, when at the trade deadline they moved Alexandre Burrows and Jannik Hansen for a pair of interesting prospects. Jonathan Dahlen and Nikolay Goldobin were brought into the organization, to try and go along with other young players like Bo Horvat, Brock Boeser and Olli Juolevi as the next wave of NHL talent. At the draft, they passed on WHL star Cody Glass and British Columbia-native Michael Rasmussen to select Swedish forward Elias Pettersson, who is tearing up the SHL with a league-leading 28 points through 21 games.
In free agency, they added a trio of players in Thomas Vanek, Michael Del Zotto and Sam Gagner that could bridge the gap to that next wave. Now, even as the team finds more immediate success than expected they could find themselves in an enviable position at this year’s deadline. While Gagner hasn’t been as effective as last season, Del Zotto and Vanek are showing their worth. Vanek has 16 points through 24 games, and has shown once again he can help a powerplay anywhere in the league. His eight points with the man advantage trail only Boeser for the Canucks. Del Zotto on the other hand has logged the most ice time on the entire team, averaging more than 22 minutes a night. The smooth-skating defenseman has nine points on the season, and plays in all situations.
Vanek is on just a one-year $2MM deal, while Del Zotto carries just a $3MM cap hit for this year and next. If their play continues at this pace, they’ll both interest several buyers at the deadline if Vancouver chooses to start selling. They’re not the only two. Erik Gudbranson is dealing with an injury but has already been rumored to have several teams interested in him as he heads towards unrestricted free agency. The 25-year old comes with a $3.5MM cap hit, and can add physicality to any lineup. The Sedin twins are also pending UFAs, but seem unlikely to be traded because of their hefty cap hits.
The rest of the blueline could also draw interest from around the league. Both Alex Edler and Chris Tanev have faced injury this year and hold some form of no-trade protection, but would be valuable additions if a team could afford their contracts. Unfortunately the Canucks have already used two of their three retained salary transactions, eating some of Hansen and Roberto Luongo’s contracts. As the deadline approaches and teams have less space to maneuver, that could prove costly.
Still, Vancouver has positioned themselves in a strong position this season. While Boeser leads the Calder Trophy race so far, and Pettersson lights up the European ranks they could add even more assets this spring. At 11-9-4 this season, it could be a quicker-than-expected rebuild.
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