The Vancouver Canucks announced they have signed Aidan McDonough to an entry-level contract. General Manager Patrik Allvin announced the contract is a two-year deal, as McDonough elected to forego free agency and join the Canucks.
McDonough was a seventh-round pick of the Canucks in 2019. He has gone on to prove he should have been drafted much higher due to a stellar college career at Northeastern. He became a trusted offensive producer for them from day one of his college career and just wrapped up his fourth consecutive season as one of the team’s top offensive players.
McDonough scored 66 goals and 124 points in 124 games at Northeastern. This season was his best as he put up 20 goals and 38 points in 34 games. He helped Northeastern to a third-place finish in the Hockey East conference but they were eliminated on Saturday by Providence who pulled off a 2-1 upset victory in overtime.
The 23-year-old could have waited until this summer and became an NHL free agent, but instead elected to sign with the team that drafted him. The Canucks sure can use the help as they sit 25th in the league standings with 61 points in 65 games. They traded away Bo Horvat, signalling a retooling of the roster that has proven not to be good enough to compete with the best teams in the league, so it would not have been good to lose one of their best prospects to free agency this summer.
The 6-foot-2 and 201 pound forward will likely get a chance to jump right into the NHL lineup. The Canucks are not chasing down a playoff spot so they can afford to test him out right away and Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK reports he will join the team immediately.
All Hail!