While Vancouver was able to take the first of a three-game set against Montreal on Wednesday, it came at a cost on their back end with both Alex Edler and Travis Hamonic leaving with injuries. The Canucks announced (Twitter link) that Hamonic has been placed on injured reserve; Rick Dhaliwal of TSN 1040 and The Athletic adds (Twitter link) that it’s an upper-body injury for the veteran. Blueliner Brogan Rafferty has been recalled from the taxi squad in a corresponding move.
Hamonic signed a PTO deal with Vancouver in training camp and had it converted to a one-year, $1.25MM contract on the eve of the regular season. He sits fourth on the Canucks in ATOI in the early going, logging 18:11 per night over five games, a number that’s skewed in part by him exiting early on Wednesday. He has two assists in seven blocked shots so far.
As for Rafferty, he’s one of Vancouver’s more interesting prospects. The 25-year-old has just two career NHL games under his belt (which came after leaving Quinnipiac in 2019) but he finished third in the AHL in scoring by a defenseman last season, notching seven goals and 38 assists in just 57 games. He should have an opportunity to jump into the lineup right away and should be an intriguing complement to Quinn Hughes as another offensive threat from the back end.