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Deadline Primer: Vancouver Canucks

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With the trade deadline fast approaching, we will be taking a closer look at the situation for each team.  Where do they stand, what do they need to do, and what assets do they have to fill those needs?  Next up are the Vancouver Canucks.

The Vancouver Canucks found themselves trying to rebuild while continuing to hold onto some of their veteran forwards, namely Henrik Sedin and Daniel Sedin. The team hoped it could rebuild on the fly this year with new head coach Travis Green and early on, the Canucks started strong, but injuries to key players such as Bo Horvat and Sven Baertschi prevented the team from continuing their success. Instead, the Canucks have dropped in the standings and find themselves ready to rebuild for another year.

Record

21-24-6, tied for 6th in Pacific Division

Deadline Status

Seller

Deadline Cap Space

$4.7MM – full-season cap hit, 2/3 retained salary transactions, 45/50 contracts per CapFriendly

Draft Picks

2018: VAN 1st, VAN 2nd, VAN 3rd, VAN 5th, VAN 6th, VAN 7th
2019: VAN 1st, VAN 2nd, VAN 3rd, VAN 4th, VAN 5th, VAN 6th, VAN 7th

Trade Chips

"Dec

The Canucks have two key trade chips in defenseman Erik Gudbranson and veteran winger Thomas Vanek, but whether the team will move them is unknown. One issue that confuses things is the Sedin twins potential interest in returning for another season next year. If the twins want to come back, the team may be more willing to hang on to their veterans to give the Sedins another year with the potential of making the playoffs.

The team has said they are considering extending Gudbranson, but rumors are that no negotiations have begun, which suggests that Gudbanson is very likely to move to another team unless they start negotiating now. A solid, but unspectacular defenseman, he will never live up to being the third-overall pick in 2010. He would be a quality addition to a team that needs help in that area. If the team wants to move Vanek, they shouldn’t have too much trouble as the 34-year-old Vanek is putting up solid numbers and already has 14 goals. He could be valuable to a team in need of a veteran scorer. In neither case would they be likely

Five Players To Watch For: D Alexander Edler, C Sam Gagner, D Erik Gudbranson, D Christopher Tanev, LW Thomas Vanek

Team Needs

1) Offensive Defensemen: The team truly lacks any offensive defenseman and it shows. Edler, the team’s top scoring defenseman is only the ninth leading scorer on the team. Their power play has little, if any support from their defenseman and the team has few defensive prospects that can put points on the board. A prospect with a good shot and the ability to put the puck in the net might be exactly what the team needs.

2) Prospects/Picks: What Vancouver wants more than anything else is future talent. Vancouver actually has quite a bit of young talent already coming through the system and wouldn’t mind even more. Last year, the team picked up several prospects including Jonathan Dahlen, Nikolay Goldobin and a conditional pick in moving out Alexandre Burrows and Jannik Hansen. If the team can add some picks or another prospect whether it’s an offensive defenseman or more wing help, the team should be better prepared for the future.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Western Notes: Edmonton’s Future, Labanc, Gaudette, Crawford

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Expect a long, boring summer for the Edmonton Oilers. After three offseasons in which the team made a “blow-up” trade, you can rest assured that it won’t be the case this summer, writes The Athletic’s Allan Mitchell (subscription required). The team, who in each of the last three years made questionable trades in hopes of sparking the team, including the 2015 trade of acquiring defenseman Griffin Reinhart (for a first-round pick which turned out to be Matthew Barzal), the 2016 trade of sending off No. 1 overall pick Taylor Hall and the 2017 trade of trading winger Jordan Eberle, should be quiet this season.

Mitchell writes that Oiler management has made it clear that the team will just be making quiet moves as they attempt to re-tool their roster to fix the teams’ struggles this season. He includes a list of team needs, which includes a first-line shooter, a top-four defenseman, a third-line center, a backup goaltender and a penalty-killing forward. He writes the team’s lack of cap space, after the extension of Connor McDavid kicks in, will not allow them to be big players in the free agent market, which will force the team to look for quality low-cost free agents and the young players from within their own organization.

Jesse Puljujarvi is the most likely candidate to continue to shoot next to McDavid, while Jujhar Khaira might make a quality third-line center if the team wants to keep Ryan Nugent-Hopkins as their second-line center and move Leon Draisaitl to the first line. Also, don’t forget about 2017 first-rounder Kailer Yamamoto, who played nine games for Edmonton this year. He continues to thrive with the WHL’s Spokane Chiefs and might be ready to take a bigger role next season.

  • Kevin Kurz of The Athletic (subscription required) writes that despite the injury to veteran center Joe Thornton, the San Jose Sharks’ top line continues to be highly efficient with winger Kevin Labanc in his place. The 22-year-old Lebanc has two goals and four assists in those four games since Thornton went down. He especially seems to be thriving on the power play. “Just feel confident,” Labanc said. “A lot of great players around me, too. … We break in cleanly, and I think that’s the big thing on our power play, is breaking in on the entry, settling things down, and once we do, just do our thing. We work well together.”
  • The Vancouver Canucks are going to try to do everything they can to ink Northeastern star center Adam Gaudette after his season is over. While there is no guarantee that will happen, Ryan Biech of The Athletic (subscription required) goes into deep analysis of Gaudette’s game and says he sees similarities between him and former Canuck Ryan Kesler. Gaudette has already scored 57 goals and 64 assists in three seasons so far for Northeastern, could be a valuable piece to the team’s puzzle if the team can sign him.
  • Chicago Sun-Times’ Mark Potash tweets that Chicago Blackhawks goaltender Corey Crawford continues to make progress towards a return. The netminder worked out on the ice for the first time since suffering a head injury in December. Coach Joel Quenneville said Crawford is expected to work out again Sunday. The team needs the veteran goalie more now than ever as they sit outside the playoffs and need a solid run if they want to get back in.

Maple Leafs Activate Rielly, Assign Holl to AHL

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The Toronto Maple Leafs announced they have activated defenseman Morgan Rielly off of injured reserve and assigned defenseman Justin Holl back to the Toronto Marlies of the AHL.

Rielly’s return should only help the Maple Leafs who have won four straight and five of their last six games. One of the team’s top defensemen, Rielly has missed their winning streak, but should add some leadership and improved offense to the team. The 26-year-old, who had to miss the all-star game after suffering an upper-body injury on Jan. 18, and is still on pace to put up career numbers. He has five goals and 26 assists in 47 games this season.

Holl, who had was an emergency recall on Wednesday after the team placed defenseman Roman Polak on injured reserve, played in two games for Toronto and was quite impressive, providing the team some offense of his own. A former second-round pick in 2010, Holl scored a goal in each of the two games he played for the Maple Leafs. He became the sixth defenseman in the NHL to score goals in his first two NHL games. In fact, his career numbers show he has played in two games, taken two shots and scored two goals. He also has a +5 plus/minus rating. He has four goals and 20 points in 39 games for the Marlies this season. Polack remains on injured reserve.

Trade Candidate: Aaron Dell

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With the trade deadline approaching, we will be profiling several players in the weeks ahead that have a good chance to be dealt by February 26th.

The San Jose Sharks find themselves in tough position when it comes to their backup goaltender Aaron Dell. The 28-year-old has only been in the league for two years, but has had quite a bit of success, especially this year. With the struggles of starter Martin Jones, Dell has had to take on bigger resposibities and, at times, has outplayed the veteran. Now, with the trade deadline three weeks away, the team must decide what it plans to do with the netminder.

Contract

Dell is in the final year of a two-year, $1.225MM contract he signed with the Sharks in July of 2016. His AAV is $625K.

2017-18

Dell was brought in two years ago as the backup to Jones and has thrived in that role. However, since December Jones has struggled, which has forced Dell into a larger role this year and he has done quite a good job filling in more often for Jones, often being the preferred starter over Jones. His numbers have been impressive, but more importantly, he has led the team to a 12-4-3 record this year.

His name has come up in trade rumors and the Sharks aren’t likely going to be able to keep the backup next year as Dell may look to seek a starting role or an opportunity to split time evenly with another goalie. On top of that, Dell should receive a significant pay raise from the $625K he is currently making.

Season Stats

22 GP, 12-4-3 record, 2.51 GAA, .917 SV%, 2 SO

Potential Suitors

Dell’s potential suitors aren’t going to be much different than any goaltender on the market whether it be Petr Mrazek, Jimmy Howard or Robin Lehner. The New York Islanders are likely looking for a goaltender, while another legitimate possibility could be the Ottawa Senators, who are struggling at that position and might want a fresh face to compete for playing time with one of their veterans. A third option could just be a trade to a elite team like the Pittsburgh Penguins or Tampa Bay Lightning who might want a more dependable backup for the playoff run.

Likelihood of Trade

A weeks ago, it seemed extremely unlikely the Sharks might move Dell as he was the team’s best goaltender. However, Jones seems to have recovered from his struggles as he has played better in his last two games and looks to have coach Peter DeBoer’s confidence again. Dell, on the other hand, hasn’t been on the ice once since the break, suggesting the team wants to make sure that Jones can handle the load if they move Dell. While San Jose is in second place in the Pacific Division, they have a number of teams right behind them and the team might be fighting to make sure they reach the playoffs as opposed to thinking about winning a Stanley Cup this season.

With the team attempting to re-tool as their veterans like Joe Thornton and Joe Pavelski are aging, the team might want to pick up an asset for Dell before they lose him. The team can ensure they get a veteran back in a deal to fill Dell’s shoes for the remainder of the season.

 

Predators Pick Up AHL’s McNeill In Trade With Stars

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The Nashville Predators keep finding themselves in the news. After announcing that former captain Mike Fisher was coming out of retirement and would sign in the coming weeks with the team, the Predators have now acquired another center via trade, albeit a minor one, as they have traded minor league defenseman Andrew O’Brien to the Dallas Stars in exchange for center Mark McNeill, according to the Dallas Stars.

Obviously added as a depth forward for the AHL’s Milwaukee Admirals, McNeill was once considered a top prospect of the Chicago Blackhawks after being drafted in the first round of the 2011 draft. Considered a strong possibility to make the proud franchise immediately after he was drafted, he didn’t make the team and found himself languishing in the AHL for years, never getting an opportunity to show what he could do in the NHL. He only played one game with Chicago before the Blackhawks moved him at the trade last year to Dallas in exchange for defenseman Johnny Oduya. He did make one appearance last year in Dallas, but spent most of the last year and all of this year with the Texas Stars. He is considered to have shooting ability, solid speed and good defensive skills, but has always struggled with consistency. He has played in 312 games in his AHL career so far. This year, the 24-year-old has played just 18 for the Texas Stars and has five goals and an assist.

As for O’Brien, the 24-year-old defenseman has also played many years in the AHL, never having been promoted to the NHL. The blueliner has played 188 career AHL games, but in just 21 games this season. He has put up three assists and 27 penalty minutes with the Milwaukee Admirals. He will report to the Texas Stars.

Calgary Flames Place Jaromir Jagr On Waivers

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Monday: Jagr has cleared waivers according to McKenzie, and will now have his contract assigned to Kladno for the remainder of the season. It very well could be the end of the line for a legendary hockey name, though there is always a chance of a return at some point down the line.

Sunday: The Calgary Flames have placed long-time NHL star Jaromir Jagr on waivers, according to TSN’s Bob McKenzie. While initially reported to have been placed on unconditional waivers with the intention of releasing him from his contract, McKenzie reports that the veteran has actually been placed through regular waivers. The 45-year-old Jagr hopes to continue his career in the NHL, but according to McKenzie, the plan is that if he clears waivers, the Flames can assign him to a European team to finish out his contract.

The Hockey Writers Ryan Pike reports that if he goes unclaimed, he’s expected to go to Kladno in the Czech league on loan. The writer adds that the difference here is that if Jagr is loaned to Kladno rather than go through unconditional waivers, then the Flames could still potentially use him in the playoffs.

Unless the veteran is claimed tomorrow morning, it could likely end the veteran’s NHL career. This move has been a long-time coming as rumors of a split between Calgary and Jagr were reported back on Jan. 6. However, a lower-body injury allowed the team to delay a decision while they placed him on injured reserve until he healed and was ready to go. Evidently, he’s ready to resume his career, just elsewhere. After signing a one-year, $2MM deal on Oct. 3 with Calgary, he has struggled fitting in with the Flames. Dealing with injuries and the fact he has slowed down quite a bit, Jagr hasn’t made the impact that many were hoping. He played in just 22 games with just one goal and six assists to show for it.

The question now is whether an NHL team is willing to kick the tires on claiming him and adding them to their roster. Perhaps several teams that might need help on one of the back lines could be interested, but considering the lack of interest this offseason from teams, there is a likelihood that he will not be claimed. A poll, back on Jan. 7, asked the question, “Should your team make a play for Jaromir Jagr.” The results were split with 52.35% suggesting that his NHL career is over, while 47.65% stated he still has something left.

Jagr, who is in his 24th year in the NHL, has played in 1,733 career games, putting up 766 goals, 1,155 assists for 1,921 points. He has also played in 208 playoff games, with 78 goals, 123 assists and 201 playoff points. Assuming he goes unclaimed and is loaned to Kladno, it’s a team he has played for before. He played 17 games there in 2004-05 and then returned in 2012-13 where he played another 34 games for them after that.

Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet was the first to report the news.

Trade Candidates: Jason Demers

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With the trade deadline approaching, we will be profiling several players in the weeks ahead that have a good chance to be dealt by February 26th.

With another dismal season in the desert, the Arizona Coyotes will once again attempt to unload their veteran players with the hopes of picking up some draft picks and opening roster spots so the team can promote some of their young talent in the minors. While the team may want to hold onto some of their offseason trade acquisitions a bit longer like Derek Stepan or Niklas Hjalmarsson, there are others such as defenseman Jason Demers, who the team will likely shop in hopes of finding a taker.

Contract

One reason Arizona was able to get Demers for such a cheap price (for Jamie McGinn) was that the Coyotes were willing to eat his contract. The 29-year-old defenseman still has three years remaining on the five-year, $22.5MM ($4.45MM AAV) deal he signed in 2016 with the Florida Panthers. However, the Panthers will retain $563K for each of the next four years, which brings his salary down to just under $4MM per year.

2017-18

While the Coyotes had high hopes that with the addition of Demers and Hjalmarsson to go with Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Alex Goligoski and second-year defenseman Jakob Chychrun, the team’s defense and new goaltender Antti Raanta might stabilize their defense. That hasn’t happened, although Demers has played well with the Coyotes and been a consistent defensive presence all season. While his offensive numbers have been modest at best (three goals this year compared to nine last year), he has played well defensively and is averaging a solid 21:06 of ice time.

Season Stats

50 GP, 3 goals, 13 assists, 16 points, -11 rating, 29 PIM, 21:46 ATOI, 51.1 CF%

Potential Suitors

While Demers is no rental player, the team has to hope a team is willing to take on three more years of his contract for a trade to work. Even if they were willing to retain some of his salary, finding a taker might be challenging. While the Toronto Maple Leafs have shown interest in Demers in previous years and might be looking for a defenseman, the likelihood they would be willing to take on his contract for three more years when their cap situation ready to explode at that time suggests they aren’t a great match. Perhaps a team with ample cap space such as the San Jose Sharks, the Colorado Avalanche or even the Winnipeg Jets might be willing to take on that contract. The New York Islanders also could use some defense, but would likely have to send some salary back to make a deal work.

Likelihood of a Trade

Arizona is likely more than willing, but again, it all comes down to whether any team wants to take on the three years remaining on his salary and how much Arizona might be willing to retain. Demers isn’t that high priced, but the defenseman is hardly that great player that will change a team’s playoff fortunes around. Yet, he is a solid, respectable defenseman who might make a solid pickup to a team’s defensive rotation.

Minor Transactions: 1/28/18

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With the 2018 NHL All-Star Game slowly coming to a close, many NHL teams will be getting ready for games on Tuesday and might be recalling several players they sent down before the break.

  • The Carolina Hurricanes announced they have recalled defenseman Haydn Fleury from the Charlotte Checkers of the AHL. The 21-year-old  was sent down to get some game time in while everyone was on break. He played one game for the Checkers, his first there this season. The former 2014 first-round pick has played 39 games for the Hurricanes this season. He has six assists in 39 games in his rookie season.

Western Notes: Seattle’s Nicknames, Blackhawks, Stamkos

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With Seattle’s expansion application almost ready to turn in to the NHL and the general belief that Seattle will have a team in place in the next few years, the Hockey News’s Sam McCaig recently ran a story with suggestions for potential nicknames for the possible expansion team. With an expansion fee of $650MM, Seattle better make sure they make the right decision when it comes to their team name.

McCaig writes that there are several good name possibilities, including the Seattle Emeralds, Seattle Totems and the Seattle Rainiers. The Emeralds would be a reference to the fact the city is known as the “Emerald City.” The Totems would be a salute to the Pacific Northwest, while the Rainiers would acknowledge Mount Rainer, the highest mountain in Washington state.

Other possibilities mentioned in the story would be the Seattle Evergreens, the Seattle Kraken, Seattle Renegades and the Seattle Sea Lions among others. Some might make good fits, while others come off as unrealistic, but regardless, assuming they are approved, Seattle will need a name at some point.

  • The Athletic’s Scott Powers (subscription required) writes that for the Chicago Blackhawks to earn themselves a playoff spot this season, they must fulfil a 10-point plan for the remaining 33 games of the season. The Blackhawks, currently in last place in the Central Division with 53 points, are seven points removed from a wildcard spot and will have a tough time making up the ground, but it isn’t impossible. The scribe writes that the estimate is the team will have to go 20-12-1 over the next 33 games to reach the playoffs, a tall order, but not impossible. Obviously, the return of goaltender Corey Crawford will be critical and that looks like a real possibility soon. Among some of his other key points, Powers writes that Brandon Saad must start playing better in the second-half of the season. His 13 goals and 10 assists is currently heading for one of his worst seasons ever. Powers also suggests a trade could help, but only if it doesn’t involve one of the team’s top prospects. The team had every reason to make those types of trades in the past, but no longer.
  • NHL.com’s Scott Burnsides notes that Tampa Bay Lightning center Steven Stamkos has seen a lot of New York Islanders center John Tavares during the all-star game. Tavares will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season and while he says he’d like to stay in New York, he has not signed an extension. Stamkos, who went through a similar situation two years ago, understands what Tavares is going through. “To be honest, I haven’t really had a discussion with John about that,” Stamkos said. “It was something that, as a player, you’ve earned the right at this point in your career to have conversations, to not have conversations, to do what you want regarding your contract. If he ever asked me, I’d give him my opinion. He’s obviously having an unbelievable season and is probably doing a better job of not letting it affect him than maybe I did. It’s in the back of your head for sure.”

Eastern Notes: Zajac, Nyquist, Toronto’s Motivation

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It’s alarming enough that the New Jersey Devils have lost 10 out of the last 12 games. They have lost their standing for a solid playoff spot and now are hanging on to one of the wildcard spots in a wildly competitive Metropolitan Division. To make matters worse, the Devils most recent four-game slide has come with little offense as well as the team has combined for three goals in those four games.

Andrew Gross of NorthJersey.com writes that the team hasn’t been able to compensate for the Taylor Hall injury who has missed the past three games and had to give up his spot in today’s all-star game due to a thumb injury. The scribe points to the play of Travis Zajac, who missed the first 17 games of the season after having offseason surgery to repair a torn left pectoral muscle. Zajac has just five goals and two assists in 31 games since returning and despite his struggles remains a top-six forward and is still on the power play. His defensive play has also cost the team some goals as well.

“I’ve got to make better plays and better decisions at key moments,” Zajac said. “We’ll find a way to work ourselves out of it. We’ve done it all year and it’s the only way to get out of it.”

  • Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press writes the team has to come to a conclusion that their chances of a playoff spot are so remote they must sell off as much as they can. While defenseman Mike Green is an obvious option in Detroit, she believes the team needs to free up a top-six forward spot for some of the team’s younger forwards, citing the contract of winger Gustav Nyquist as their best bet to unload one of them. Nyquist has another year on his contract of $4.75MM which might force Detroit to retain part of his salary and they still would have to get him to sign off on his no-trade clause. However, with 14 goals in 48 games, he is having a solid season and has already passed his total from last year and is closing in on his goal totals from the 2015-16 season as well. That might give the team an opportunity to promote prospect Evgeny Svechnikov, the team’s first-round pick in 2015.
  • The Toronto Sun’s Steve Simmons wonders how the Toronto Maple Leafs will stay motivated in the final third of the season. The scribe writes that the Maple Leafs have basically locked up a playoff spot (albeit, unofficially) as they are entrenched in the Atlantic Division’s third playoff spot with a 28-18-5 record. They are unlikely to move up as Boston is five points ahead of them and surging and Tampa Bay 10 points ahead of them in the standings. They are also not likely to fall out of the playoffs as the Detroit Red Wings and Montreal Canadiens are 15 points behind them. Simmons believes that coach Mike Babcock will have his hands full for the remainder of the season and hopes when the time comes, the team will be ready for the playoffs.

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