Canucks Recall 13 Black Aces Ahead of Game 2
The Vancouver Canucks have brought up reinforcements from the minor leagues following the Abbotsford Canucks’ elimination from the AHL playoffs, recalling 13 players (Twitter link). The full list includes forwards Arshdeep Bains, Linus Karlsson, Danila Klimovich, Jonathan Lekkerimäki, Vasily Podkolzin, Aatu Räty, and Max Sasson; defenders Nick Cicek, Matt Irwin, Cole McWard, Elias Pettersson, and Christian Wolanin; and goaltender Zach Sawchenko.
The list features four of the AHL’s Abbotsford Canucks top five scorers, following the team’s elimination from the AHL’s Pacific Division Finals at the hands of the Ontario Reign. Abbotsford went on a strong postseason run after tying for fourth in the AHL in goals scored during the regular season. Now, their best and brightest will bolster a Vancouver lineup that’s currently up 1-0 on the Oilers. Thatcher Demko is the only Canuck currently out with injury, likely keeping any of today’s recalls from slotting into the lineup right away. But the team will have a wide array of options to choose from should they need a fill-in – ranging from highly-skilled prospects in Lekkerimäki and Räty, to hard-nosed forwards Bains and Podkolzin, to rangy defenders Irwin and Pettersson.
While Podkolzin, Bains, Karlsson, and McWard have each played in NHL games this season, the former is the only one to earn a significant role. Podkolzin played in 19 games and recorded two assists this season, averaging just under 11 minutes of ice time. He’d likely be the first bet for a fill-in should Vancouver need a forward, while Irwin – the only member of the list with Stanley Cup Playoffs experience – likely leads the defenders.
West Notes: Marchment, Pettersson, Henrique, Drouin
The Stars have been without Mason Marchment since he suffered an undisclosed injury in the second game of the opening round. However, he could return for the second game of their second-round series against Colorado as Joey Hayden of the Dallas Morning News relays that the winger is now close to returning and is likely to be a game-time decision on Thursday. The 28-year-old had a career year offensively with 22 goals and 31 assists in 81 games during the regular season and is a big part of Dallas’ deep forward group so getting him back – whether it’s Thursday or soon after – would be a significant boost for them.
Other news from the West:
- After missing Tuesday’s practice due to illness, Canucks center Elias Pettersson will play tonight in their series opener, mentions Thomas Drance of The Athletic (Twitter link). Head coach Rick Tocchet also ruled out any speculation that the illness designation was covering up an injury. Pettersson had a strong regular season with 89 points in 82 games but was quiet in the first round, being held to just three assists in six contests against Nashville.
- As expected, Oilers forward Adam Henrique has been ruled out of tonight’s opener, notes Daniel Nugent-Bowman of The Athletic (Twitter link). He was listed as doubtful yesterday due to a lower-body injury. However, head coach Kris Knoblauch added that he’s hopeful that the veteran will be able to return on Friday, continuing to list him as day-to-day. Henrique had a pair of points in their opening-round victory over Los Angeles.
- Avalanche winger Jonathan Drouin skated today for the first time as he works his way back from a lower-body injury that caused him to miss the entire first round. Speaking with reporters including Evan Rawal of Colorado Hockey Now (Twitter link), head coach Jared Bednar indicated that they need to ensure that Drouin’s wound heals so that it won’t bust open again which suggests he probably isn’t overly close to returning just yet. Drouin had a strong bounce-back showing during the regular season, picking up 56 points in 79 games after managing just 29 in 58 in 2022-23.
NHL Announces Finalists For 2024 Lady Byng Trophy
The NHL continues to announce the finalists for their end-of-season awards. Today, they revealed the three contenders for the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy, given annually to “the player adjudged to have exhibited the best type of sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct combined with a high standard of playing ability”. The finalists are Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews, Canucks center Elias Pettersson, and Hurricanes defenseman Jaccob Slavin.
This is the third time that Matthews is up for the award, having finished second in voting in 2019-20 and third in 2020-21. The 26-year-old led the NHL in goals for the third time in four years this season, notching a career-best 69 along with 107 points, also a new personal best, helping lead Toronto to their eighth straight playoff appearance. He had 20 penalty minutes this season despite having the seventh-most ice time among all NHL forwards; that PIM total was the lowest among the NHL’s top-15 scorers.
Pettersson, meanwhile, is up for the award for the first time and is the first Canucks nominee in franchise history. While the 25-year-old saw his numbers dip this year compared to last season, he still managed to finish third on Vancouver in goals (34), assists (55), and points (89). Pettersson took just six minor penalties this season and finished 19th in total ice time for forwards.
As for Slavin, he’s a finalist for the Lady Byng for the third time. He won in 2020-21 and finished second in voting the following year. The 30-year-old has yet to reach the 20-PIM mark in a single season in his nine-year career and was assessed just four minors this season for the second straight year. Slavin logged just shy of 21 minutes a night on the back end for the Hurricanes, one of the top defensive units in the NHL this season. His penalty minute total is the lowest among players who logged at least 1,600 minutes of ice time this season.
The award was voted on by members of the Professional Hockey Writers Association at the end of the regular season. The winner will be revealed next month.
Canucks Sign Elias Pettersson To Eight-Year Extension
There was a recent push on extension talks between the Canucks and center Elias Pettersson and it appears that push helped get a deal over the finish line. The team announced that they’ve inked Pettersson to an eight-year contract extension.
GM Patrik Allvin released the following statement on the signing:
This is a very important signing for the Vancouver Canucks. Elias is one of the top players in the National Hockey League and is a key member of our leadership group. We know his best days are ahead of him and with his high end skill and desire to be the best, we look forward to seeing Elias succeed and grow. This signing is another example of our ownerships’ unwavering commitment to do what ever it takes to help us be a successful organization.
Financial terms of the contract were not disclosed by the team but Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli reports (Twitter link) that the deal is worth $92.8MM in total for an AAV of $11.6MM. Chris Johnston of TSN and The Athletic adds (Twitter link) that $47MM of the payout is in the form of signing bonuses while the contract carries a full no-move clause once he’s eligible for the 2025-26 season. CapFriendly has the full breakdown which is as follows:
2024-25: $2.5MM salary, $12MM signing bonus
2025-26: $4.5MM salary, $10MM signing bonus
2026-27: $11.0MM salary
2027-28: $9.45MM salary, $5MM signing bonus
2028-29: $7.25MM salary, $5MM signing bonus
2029-30: $3.7MM salary, $5MM signing bonus
2030-31: $3.7MM salary, $5MM signing bonus
2031-32: $3.7MM salary, $5MM signing bonus
Vancouver drafted the 25-year-old in the first round (fifth overall) back in 2017 and since then, he has gone from being a key core piece to a legitimate franchise player. Pettersson won the Calder Trophy in his rookie campaign in 2018-19 where he had 66 points and followed that up with 66 more the following season. However, an injury-riddled 2020-21 season ultimately resulted in the two sides settling on a three-year bridge deal, one that was set to expire this summer where he would have been a restricted free agent with salary arbitration eligibility and a year away from unrestricted free agency.
Pettersson made a big jump on the offensive side of things last season, setting new career highs across the board with 39 goals and 63 assists, finishing tenth in NHL scoring. That fuelled speculation that the two sides would work out a long-term agreement last summer and put any speculation to rest. However, Pettersson and his camp had repeatedly indicated that his preference was to wait until the offseason before making a determination on his next contract.
This season, Pettersson’s per-game averages are down just slightly as he’s on pace for 38 goals and 61 assists, numbers that are still upper-tier league-wide while he is an all-situations player. That had only helped spur on speculation about his willingness to sign long-term with the Canucks since he was still wanting to wait until the offseason to put pen to paper on his next contract. That speculation got to the point where Vancouver and Carolina reportedly entered into serious discussions about a potential trade before both Vancouver and Pettersson took a step back and opted to take a real run at hammering out a new deal, talks which clearly proved fruitful.
The contract is by far the richest in franchise history, an outcome that shouldn’t come as much surprise considering Pettersson’s recent performance and the high demand for top-end centers. The deal will make him the fifth-highest-paid player AAV-wise in the NHL next season behind only Auston Matthews, Nathan MacKinnon, Connor McDavid, and Artemi Panarin.
Vancouver now has a little over $60MM in spending on the books for next season per CapFriendly to just a dozen players with Filip Hronek headlining their crop of restricted free agents. Of note, only two full-time regular defensemen are under contract for 2024-25 so Allvin will need to allocate a lot of their remaining money to filling out the back end. Meanwhile, Pettersson is now one of just three Canucks under contract past the 2026-27 campaign, joining center J.T. Miller and blueliner Quinn Hughes.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Canucks, Hurricanes Discussed Elias Pettersson Trade Before Extension Talks
The Vancouver Canucks came close to trading star centerman Elias Pettersson, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports. Friedman shared that Vancouver was engaged in trade talks with the Carolina Hurricanes that advanced a serious enough point that Vancouver was forced to make a decision – ultimately opting to take another pass at extending the top-scoring 25-year-old. News of the trade talks was enough to inspire Pettersson to allow his representative Pat Brisson to continue discussing a new deal in Vancouver. The two sides remain steadfast on finding an extension, as reported earlier this week.
While Pettersson rumors have swirled around in light of few extension talks, there has yet to be serious weight to any trade talks. That’s now changed, as the Canucks inched towards dealing their star to one of the NHL’s premier teams. There’s no doubting that any deal involving Pettersson would go down in history. The young forward has 29 goals and 75 points in just 61 games this season, scoring at an 82-game pace of 39 goals and 101 points. That would fall just narrowly short of the career-high Pettersson recorded last season, when he managed 39 goals and 102 points in 80 games.
Pettersson’s scoring this season leads all U26 players in the NHL, ahead of major names like Cale Makar, Jesper Bratt, Jack Hughes, and Tim Stutzle. Speculating a price for such one of the league’s top players is never an easy feat – and Pettersson’s case is made even more difficult by the lack of clear assets on either side. The most recent comparable deal is likely when the Calgary Flames traded Matthew Tkachuk to the Florida Panthers for Jonathan Huberdeau, MacKenzie Weegar, Cole Schwindt, and a first-round pick.
But that trade swapped one 100-point scorer for another, something that Carolina neither has nor
would be willing to part with. The Hurricanes’ greatest value sits in 26-year-old Sebastian Aho, 21-year-old Seth Jarvis, and 23-year-old Andrei Svechnikov. One of these names would likely need to move in a Pettersson deal – both to add value and create lineup space – though Carolina would still likely need to add value. That could come in the form of reliable centerman Martin Nečas, who has come into his own in recent seasons, or defense depth such as Brett Pesce, Brady Skjei, or Dmitry Orlov. Carolina also has their first-round pick in each of the next three drafts, all of which could have come into play.
Vancouver is, for now, aiming towards extending Pettersson – likely poised to offer him a record-setting contract. If they do, they’ll lock up their forward of the future to lineup alongside defenseman of the future Quinn Hughes, who has three more seasons left in a six-year, $47.1MM contract signed in October of 2021.
Vancouver Canucks, Elias Pettersson Making Progress On Extension
According to Frank Seravalli of The Daily Faceoff, the Vancouver Canucks and forward Elias Pettersson are making progress on a contract extension that would keep Pettersson in British Columbia for the next eight seasons, and it could be announced within the next several days. This marks a significant change in attitude from Pettersson, who appeared adamant about not wanting to discuss an extension with the Canucks during the season.
It will be interesting to see what the eventual dollar amount that Vancouver will give to Pettersson on this new contract. Heading into the offseason, the Canucks will have approximately $35.74MM available to them in cap space, with a total of nine players set to become unrestricted free agents, and another two set for restricted free agency, including Pettersson. Comparing Pettersson’s production and recent contracts given out to similar players, Pettersson could earn anywhere between $11MM-$13MM on this new deal.
Over the last two years, Pettersson has taken his production to another level, scoring 68 goals and 177 points in his last 141 games in Vancouver. Currently sitting 10th in the league in scoring on a team contending for the President’s Trophy, there is every reason to believe that Pettersson will finish much higher than 18th in Hart Trophy voting like he did last season.
Unfortunately, with the Canucks being tight to the cap ceiling even with the salary cap set to increase to $87.7MM next year, this likely means that Vancouver will be unable to extend recently acquired Elias Lindholm to a new deal. With Lindholm reportedly seeking an AAV of $9MM on his next contract, it would be rare to see a team sign their first- and second-highest-paid forward in the same offseason.
Nevertheless, this will set the Canucks core in place for the long haul, with the trio of Pettersson, J.T. Miller, and Quinn Hughes locked up until at least the 2026-27 season. Now that everything is clicking in Vancouver, the Canucks will now be able to reallocate money to supplement their core for the future.
Morning Notes: Johnson, Lindholm, Lightning
Mike Harrington of Buffalo News Sports is reporting that Buffalo Sabres defenseman Erik Johnson isn’t looking to move on from the Sabres and has not approached management for a trade. The 35-year-old is a former Stanley Cup champion with the Colorado Avalanche and could be in demand according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman.
Johnson was the 2006 first-overall pick, and although he never reached the levels scouts had predicted for him. He has remained a stable defensive defenseman and solid penalty killer throughout his career. He was a good offensive contributor early in his career but hasn’t topped 27 points in a year since the 2013-14 season.
Things could change for Johnson, but at this point, he told Harrington that his focus is on Buffalo, and he doesn’t want to abandon the team midseason. Johnson signed a one-year contract in the off-season as a free agent with an AAV of $3.25MM.
The Sabres entered the season with hopes of competing for a playoff spot but currently sit in 14th place in the Eastern Conference and are 10 points back of the Detroit Red Wings for the final playoff spot.
In other morning notes:
- Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic wrote today that newly acquired Vancouver Canucks forward Elias Lindholm and the team are both comfortable with waiting to see how he adjusts to the team and how the rest of the season and the playoffs go. It makes for both sides given that Lindholm is just four and a half months away from unrestricted free agency and the Canucks have to also consider a potential long-term extension for superstar Elias Pettersson. LeBrun adds that he believes the Canucks want to sign both players long-term and have coveted Lindholm for quite some time. The 29-year-old had an incredible debut with Vancouver, notching two goals in a 3-2 win. However, his second game was a disaster as Lindholm went -4 in a 4-0 loss to the Boston Bruins.
- Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic wrote today that he believes that the injury to Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Mikhail Sergachev could prompt Lightning general manager Julien BriseBois to enter the market for a defenseman as there is a possibility that Sergachev could be out for the rest of the regular season due to injury. If the young defenseman is done playing until the playoffs it would open the door for BriseBois to go $8.5 million to go above the cap on LTIR. The issue Tampa Bay might run into is having the assets to make the move given that they don’t have a first-round pick until 2026 and their farm system is one of the worst in the NHL.
Morning Notes: Skills Results, Lacher, Coyotes
The NHL’s All-Star Skills Competition was held on Friday night in a revamped format that saw a dozen players compete in a head-to-head format while taking part in at least four of the events. Oilers center Connor McDavid took home the title and $1MM while the rest of the results were as follows.
Fastest Skater: McDavid (Oilers, 13.408 seconds)
One-Timers: Nathan MacKinnon (Avalanche, 23 points)
Passing Challenge: Elias Pettersson (Canucks, 25 points)
Hardest Shot: Cale Makar (Avalanche, 102.56 mph)
Stick Handling: McDavid (Oilers, 25.755 seconds)
Accuracy Shooting: McDavid (Oilers, 9.158 seconds)
One-On-One: William Nylander (Maple Leafs, 9 points), Alexandar Georgiev (Avalanche, 9 saves)
Obstacle Course: McDavid (Oilers, 40.666 seconds)
Other early news from around the hockey world:
- Former Bruins goaltender Blaine Lacher passed away on Friday at the age of 53, the team announced (Twitter link). Lacher made an immediate impact in the NHL, coming up as Boston’s starter in the lockout-shortened 1994-95 campaign, putting up a 2.41 GAA in 35 games to earn him a top-five finish in Calder Trophy voting. However, Lacher only made seven appearances at the top level after that. No cause of death was revealed.
- On Friday, the NHLPA expressed its frustration with Arizona’s search for a new arena site, stating that they’ve missed two deadlines already while not engaging with the PA on numerous fronts. However, it appears the team remains on track to purchase a parcel of land as the team confirmed (Twitter link) a report from ABC15’s Taylor Rocha that they are moving forward with a plan to buy in North Phoenix. At this point, multiple arena sites are still being considered which means we’re still likely a little while away from having more clarity on that front.
Afternoon Notes: NHL Three Stars, Faber, Rafferty
As we head into the All-Star break the NHL announced its Three Stars for January. The first star of the month was Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon who posted 12 goals and 14 assists in just 12 games to lead the Avalanche to a 9-3 record in the month of January.
Following him was Edmonton Oilers netminder Stuart Skinner who had a perfect month going 9-0 with a 1.33 goals-against average and .953 save percentage as he helped guide the Oilers on their current 16-game win streak. It’s been a remarkable turnaround for Skinner after he started the season with losses in seven of his first eight games.
Finally, Vancouver Canucks center Elias Pettersson rounds out the top-3 as he finished January with 14 goals and seven assists in 13 games and he will be headed to Toronto for his fourth NHL All-Star Game this weekend.
In other afternoon notes:
- Minnesota Wild defenseman Brock Faber was named the NHL’s Rookie of the Month for January. The 21-year-old moved into the Calder Trophy conversation by posting two goals and 11 assists in 14 games during the first month of 2024 and averaged over 25 minutes of ice time per game. Faber became the first player in Wild history to take home the honor and led all NHL rookies in multiple statistical categories including points, time on ice, shots (with 31), blocked shots (with 38) and assists. Faber now has four goals and 25 assists in 49 games this season with the Wild.
- The Detroit Red Wings have assigned defenseman Brogan Rafferty to the Grand Rapids Griffins of the American Hockey League. The move was made this morning and is most likely a paper move to allow the Wings to bank cap space during the All-Star break after their 3-2 overtime loss to the Ottawa Senators last night. The 28-year-old has been a healthy scratch during his recalls this season and hasn’t played an NHL yet this year. Rafferty has two goals and 14 assists in 38 AHL games this season.
Canucks Notes: Pettersson, Karlsson, Kuzmenko
Recently, the agent for Canucks center Elias Pettersson indicated that he wasn’t sure if there would be any more contract discussions between now and the end of the season. Pettersson himself has now shut the door on that idea, telling NHL.com’s Kevin Woodley that he wants to wait for those talks until after the season ends. The 25-year-old cracked the 100-point mark last season for the first time and is on pace to eclipse that again this year, putting himself in a great bargaining position for his final trip through restricted free agency this summer. Pettersson is owed a qualifying offer of $8.82MM at that time but it will take a few million more than that to get him to pen to paper on a contract when the time comes.
More from Vancouver:
- The team announced last night (Twitter link) that forward Linus Karlsson was recalled from AHL Abbotsford. The 24-year-old has now been recalled four times this season but the first three didn’t result in much playing time as he suited up in just four contests with Vancouver. Karlsson has spent most of the season in the minors and has been quite productive, recording nine goals and 16 assists in 27 games. He could take the place of Andrei Kuzmenko in the lineup tonight against Toronto, Postmedia’s Patrick Johnston suggests.
- Speaking of Kuzmenko, Sportsnet’s Iain McIntyre speculates that if the Canucks need to clear cap space to make any upgrades before the trade deadline, the winger is the likeliest candidate to move. Previously, Tyler Myers and his expiring $6MM AAV had been perceived as trade bait but he’s playing an important role on the back end while Kuzmenko has struggled mightily in his sophomore year. However, being only a year removed from a 39-goal campaign will likely have teams interested in him as a buy-low candidate, even with a $5.5MM price tag through next season.