The Canucks have signed forward Jake DeBrusk to a seven-year deal with a $5.5MM cap hit, the team announced. They’re also bringing in depth winger Kiefer Sherwood on a two-year deal worth $1.5MM annually. Continuing to add to their forward core, the team also announced a two-year, $4.5MM contract for Danton Heinen. Switching over the blue line, the team has announced a one-year, $1.5MM contract with defenseman Derek Forbort. They later brought in center Nathan Smith on a one-year deal, per CHEK’s Rick Dhaliwal.
DeBrusk has a no-move clause for the first three years of his contract, per TSN’s Ryan Rishaug. It converts to a 15-team no-trade clause for the remainder of the deal. The full breakdown of the deal can be found via PuckPedia.
DeBrusk is finally moving on from the Boston Bruins, after spending much of the last three seasons surrounded by trade rumors. He’s found his scoring groove in that stretch, kicked off by a strong 25 goals and 42 points in 2021-22. DeBrusk followed that up with a career-high 50 points, while tying his high of 27 goals, and then posted 40 points this year. The performances have left a strong hint of upside left untouched in DeBrusk, who should be poised for a prime position in Vancouver’s top-nine after Elias Lindholm’s signing in Boston. It will be DeBrusk’s first NHL experience outside of Boston, having recorded all 266 points and 465 games of his career with the Bruins.
He’ll be flanked by a trio of depth forwards in Heinen, Sherwood, and Smith. Of the bunch, it’s Heinen who’s earned the most recent acclaim, having posted 17 goals and 36 points with the Bruins this season. It was a standout year after Heinen managed just 22 points last season – painting him as an inconsistent but serviceable third-line winger. That’s exactly the role he’ll be asked to fill, in place of Ilya Mikheyev, who was moved to the Chicago Blackhawks. Sherwood should also earn a role in the wake of that trade, with a breakout 10 goals and 27 points this year putting him in a good position to fill Sam Lafferty’s role on Vancouver’s bottom line. He’ll face competition from a long list of Canucks prospects, as well as from Smith – who spent last year posting 31 points in 60 games with the AHL’s Tuscon Roadrunners.
Finally, Forbort will provide the stout veteran presence on the blue-line left by Ian Cole. Forbort, also moving over from Boston, has signed a one-year, $1.5MM deal with the Canucks – following a meager four assists in 35 games this season. He faced injuries for much of the year, though, and still found a way to make serviceable defensive impacts when he stepped into the lineup. He’ll be exactly what the doctor ordered for a Canucks team in need of firm defensive depth.
Good for Jake! Happy he isn’t in the eastern conference
Both reasonable deals
@bighiggy — Without Jim Benning gumming up the works, anything’s possible, eh?
Massive over pay for Debrusk.
Massive? Not really
Maybe a year or 2 too many
But at 5.5 for a guy who can get 20 to 30 goals that’s not bad
Canucks twisting the knife by signing Debrusk and stealing Heinen from Boston. The rivalry continues!
… and Derek Forbort! Give them all the Bruins!
I know it doesn’t work this way but as it stands it’s Lindholm and Zadorov for Debrusk, Forby, and Heinen. Bruins definitely got the better of the Canucks as usual.
@fightcitymayor — But they have to draw the line at “Boston Pizza”. :)
Remember during the 2011 Stanley Cup when the chain changed the name of their local Boston Pizza joints to ‘Vancouver Pizza’? Silly sods. And people still rioted.
DeBrusk is a better fit there than Jake would have been, actually.
@66TheNumberOfTheBest — Guentzel, right? Pat Steinberg on SN960 has been swapping DeBrusk’s & Guentzel’s names for a while now today. He’s driving himself crazy, while still being “stuck” in Vegas after covering the draft on-site.
Oh, right…yes, Guentzel. DeBrusk brings a bit more north/south than Jake G.