We’re still a few weeks away from the first round of college free agency that will happen as NCAA seasons come to an end but there is some news on the second round which comes in mid-August. CHEK’s Rick Dhaliwal recently reported on Sportsnet 650 (audio link) that defenseman Jacob Truscott will not sign with the Canucks and will instead hit the open market in the summer.
The 21-year-old was a fifth-round pick back in 2020 (144th overall) and is in his fourth and final season at Michigan. Last season was his best offensively in terms of points per game when he put up 16 points in 23 games playing alongside Luke Hughes on their top pairing before suffering a season-ending leg injury. This season, Truscott’s numbers are down a bit although the captain still has 13 points in 30 games so far.
This may be a case of the numbers game quashing a chance for Truscott to join Vancouver. The team has been aggressive in signing college free agents lately headlined by blueliners Akito Hirose and Cole McWard while blueline prospect Elias Pettersson is set to turn pro next season along with Kirill Kudryavtsev, limiting Truscott’s opportunities if he was to sign with the Canucks.
If Truscott is amenable to signing with another team and not hitting the open market, it’s possible that Vancouver could use his signing rights in a trade to get some sort of return. Otherwise, he’ll become a free agent on August 16th.