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Carson Soucy Not Ready To Return For Canucks

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In a report from Thomas Drance of The Athletic, the Vancouver Canucks will have to wait a bit longer for the return of Carson Soucy. Making his way back from a fractured leg, Soucy had just recently returned to skating a little over a week ago. In the same report, Drance also points out that forward Nils Hoglander will be a game-time decision for the team’s game tonight against the Ottawa Senators.

With an injury to his knee, foot, and leg all within his first three months as a member of the Canucks organization, Soucy’s tenure with the team has already been plagued by injuries. Of the 36 games played by Vancouver so far this season, Soucy has only suited up in 13 of those, only being available for 36% of the team’s games up to this point. When Soucy eventually returns to the lineup, assuming he can stay clear of injuries for the remainder of the season, the Canucks will own one of the most well-rounded defensive cores across the league.

In the case of Hoglander, it is unclear by the reporting if he is dealing with a nagging injury, or if the Canucks are debating on carrying him as an extra forward tonight. Although he suited up in the team’s most recent game against the Philadelphia Flyers, recent reports indicated that Hoglander had been moved off the second line and recently practiced as an extra forward.

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Washington Capitals Sign Ethan Bear

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12/28/23: The Capitals have now officially announced Bear’s signing, confirming the two-year term of the contract as well as its $2.0625MM cap hit.

12/20/23: Washington wrote on X this morning that the team is “expected to sign” Bear “at a later date,” adding that he is joining the team for their morning skate today.

12/11/23: The Capitals have made a contract offer to unrestricted free-agent defenseman Ethan Bear and are expected to close a deal in the near future, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported on the 32 Thoughts podcast Monday.

CHEK’s Rick Dhaliwal added this morning that Bear’s agency has told his former team, the Canucks, that they’re out of the running for his services. Dhaliwal surmises that the key element in Bear’s decision will be term. The Capitals are one of the few teams prepared to offer Bear a multi-year deal, Friedman said, while the Canucks don’t have the financial flexibility to offer Bear anything more than a one-year, $1MM-prorated deal.

Washington would be the fourth NHL stop for Bear, who has suited up for the Oilers, Hurricanes and Canucks since Edmonton drafted him 124th overall in the 2015 draft. After playing a limited role in Carolina in 2021-22, Bear signed a one-year, $2.2MM deal with the Hurricanes following an arbitration filing but was dealt to Vancouver, along with depth forward Lane Pederson, for a fifth-round pick in the first few days of the 2022-23 campaign. Bear rebuilt his market value in Vancouver, recording three goals, 13 assists and 16 points in 61 games while averaging 18:32 per contest and posting a 51% Corsi share at even strength.

Named to Canada’s roster for the 2023 World Championship, Bear went without a point in eight games before sustaining a shoulder injury that required surgery in mid-June, which carried a projected recovery timeline of six months. With Bear out long-term and his role on the squad moving forward uncertain, the Canucks opted not to issue him a qualifying offer and let him reach unrestricted free agency.

That isn’t to say Vancouver wasn’t interested in retaining the 26-year-old once he was ready to return to play, as they’ve remained in discussions with Bear’s camp and had made contract offers in recent days. With Bear reportedly prioritizing term, however, there was no clear path for a return to the Canucks.

Instead, he looks to join a Capitals defense that’s been solid this season in preventing quality chances against but hasn’t provided much in the way of offense outside of John Carlson, who leads the team in assists with 14 in 25 games. Bear won’t move the needle in terms of point production from the Washington blueline, but he remains a well-rounded player who can log minutes on special teams. The Capitals’ penalty kill has been in the middle of the pack this season, ranking 18th in the league with a 79.8% success rate.

However, considering Bear is a right-shot defenseman, the fit seems a bit puzzling on Washington’s depth chart. Unless they’re looking to try Bear on his off-side, he would sit behind a rather deep right side of the Washington defense comprised of Carlson, Nick Jensen and Trevor van Riemsdyk, all of whom have been competent this season. Bear is a valuable asset, but he’s not a major upgrade over either Jensen or van Riemsdyk, especially with all three of their right-shot defenders locked into seven-figure cap hits through 2026.

Carson Soucy Resumes Skating

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Still, without a firm timeline for his return, the Vancouver Canucks will likely be getting defenseman Carson Soucy back very shortly, as he has finally begun skating again after suffering a fractured leg in November (article link). Factoring in the recent acquisition of Nikita Zadorov, once their defensive core becomes completely healthy, there is a very reasonable argument to be made that Vancouver may have the best defensive core in the league.

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Andrei Kuzmenko Has Not Requested A Trade

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  • It’s been a disappointing sophomore campaign for Canucks winger Andrei Kuzmenko. The 27-year-old potted 39 goals in 81 games last season after signing with Vancouver as a free agent out of Russia, but his point production and ice time have dipped this year, and he finds himself outside of a top-six role with three healthy scratches this season. As a result, some trade rumors have popped up over the past couple of weeks. However, Kuzmenko’s agent, Dan Milstein, says his camp doesn’t fuel those talks. Speaking with British Columbia-based reporter Joshua Griffith, Milstein said Kuzmenko is on the same page with both the Canucks coaching staff and front office, reiterating his client is “very happy to be in Vancouver” and that there is a path forward for Kuzmenko in the organization.

San Jose Sharks Acquire Jack Studnicka

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Confirmation coming by way of the Vancouver Canucks, the San Jose Sharks will acquire forward Jack Studnicka in exchange for defenseman Nick Cicek, and a sixth-round selection in the 2024 NHL Draft.

Acquired by the Canucks in October of last season, Studnicka was originally a member of the Boston Bruins, playing in a total of 38 games wearing the spoked ’B’. Last season in Vancouver, Studnicka played in a total of 47 games, scoring four goals and eight points overall.

Unfortunately for Studnicka, even after a solid showing at preseason camp, he became a victim of the glut of forwards in the Vancouver organization. With 13 players already on the roster, and a few above still above him in the organizational depth chart, Studnicka’s future with the team was entirely blocked.

Now in San Jose, even with a healthy roster, Studnicka should still have access to adequate playing time. However, with three forwards already on the team’s injured reserve, the Sharks now have even more of a need to round out their forward depth as we approach the dog days of the regular season.

Averaging just under 11 and a half minutes of ice time per game throughout his career, Studnicka should continue to average similar ice time in the Bay Area. Given the current makeup of San Jose’s roster, Studnicka should effectively replace either Justin Bailey or Givani Smith in the team’s bottom six of their forward core.

Going the other way to the Canucks, Cicek suited up in 16 games for the Sharks last season, notching four assists before November 30th. Although born in Winnipeg, Cicek spent his junior career playing for the Portland Winterhawks of the WHL, a little under a six-hour drive to Vancouver over the border.

Only playing for the Sharks’ AHL affiliate, the San Jose Barracuda, this season, Cicek has suited up in 18 games, scoring one goal and three points. Given the Canucks’ current depth in their defensive core, it is likely that Cicek will suit up for their AHL affiliate, the Abbotsford Canucks.

Suter Activated Off IR

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  • Prior to their game tonight versus Florida, the Canucks announced (Twitter link) that they’ve activated center Pius Suter from injured reserve. The 27-year-old has missed the last month due to a lower-body injury.  Suter was off to a slow start to his first season with Vancouver as he has been limited to four goals in his first 15 games.  Having sent back Linus Karlsson recently, they didn’t need to make another move to open up a spot for Suter’s activation.

Canucks Have Held Preliminary Extension Talks With Jim Rutherford, None With Tyler Myers

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Canucks president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford is in the final season of his contract with the club, a three-year deal he’d signed after being instated in a permanent role in December 2021. His and GM Patrik Allvin’s short-term surgery on the roster is a significant reason why the surging Canucks find themselves well-positioned to make the playoffs for the second time since 2015.

Under his watch, the Canucks now find themselves free of most of the bloated contracts signed with former GM Jim Benning at the helm and, in true Rutherford fashion, have already made a sizable trade this season to improve their depth well ahead of the trade deadline, capturing hulking defender Nikita Zadorov from the Flames for a value price.

  • In yesterday’s interview, Rutherford also implied the team had not held extension discussions with pending unrestricted free agent defenseman Tyler Myers. The 33-year-old is Vancouver’s second-oldest defender behind offseason free agent signing Ian Cole and is in the final season of an oft-criticized five-year, $30MM contract carrying a $6MM cap hit signed in 2019 under the Benning regime. His name was featured in offseason trade discussions, namely a deal that almost sent him to the floundering Sharks for the Canucks to free up additional cap space. However, holding onto Myers may have benefitted the Canucks. His trade value has never been higher while with the team. He was paid a $5MM signing bonus at the beginning of the season and is due $1MM in actual salary during this campaign, making him a more palatable financial acquisition for teams. His on-ice stats have never been better as a Canuck. While his minutes have been reduced to under 19 minutes per game, he’s responded with two goals and 11 assists for 13 points in 29 contests, his best points-per-game rate in a full season since he tallied 37 in 80 games with the Sabres during his sophomore season in 2010-11. His two-way game is still an area of major concern, however, as his pairings with Cole and Carson Soucy have been the Canucks’ worst in terms of controlling possession quality this season.

Morning Notes: Kuzmenko, Pinto, Couture

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The Vancouver Canucks could be looking to move high-scoring winger Andrei Kuzmenko, according to The Fourth Period’s Dave Pagnotta. Pagnotta shares that the team has discussed trading him but that, “nothing is close”, citing his $5.5MM cap hit and modified-no-trade-clause as pieces that make a trade challenging.

Kuzmenko is off to a slower start to the season after scoring an electric 39 goals and 74 points in 81 games last season. It was Kuzmenko’s first year in the NHL, with Vancouver signing him out of the KHL, where he had previously played 315 career games and scored 200 points. The 27-year-old winger is now sporting just five goals and 16 points through 26 games this season, on pace for just 50 points in 82 games. Pagnotta shares that Vancouver could be looking for a talent-for-talent swap, attempting to bring in a new face to replace Kuzmenko’s role in the top-six. The left-winger has averaged roughly 16 minutes of ice time through his 107 career NHL games so far.

Other notes from around the league:

  • Shane Pinto is expected to resume training with the Ottawa Senators’ skills coaches soon, after doing much of his training at various colleges while serving his 41-game suspension. The Ottawa Sun’s Bruce Garrioch shared expects the forward to sign his qualifying offer, which would give Pinto a cap hit of $874K. Pinto is eligible to resume playing for either the Ottawa Senators or Belleville Senators on January 21st.
  • Logan Couture spoke with media for the first time in two months on Tuesday, shedding light on the lower-body injury that’s so far held him out of the season. Couture, 34, candidly shared that he had feared the injury could end his career, but that those fears are behind him after he began rehabbing the injury. He is now expecting to return soon, but the Sharks captain didn’t have a timeline yet, calling himself, “truly week-to-week”. Couture has spent his entire career with the San Jose Sharks, totaling 700 points in 927 games with the club.

Canucks Keeping Open Mind Regarding Kuzmenko's Future

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It has been a rough start to Andrei Kuzmenko’s sophomore season.  The 27-year-old had 39 goals last season but has been limited to just four in his first 25 games of the year.  He has been a healthy scratch at times and has lined up recently on the fourth line as well, fueling trade speculation.  Speaking with Sportsnet’s Iain MacIntyre, Canucks president Jim Rutherford indicated that they’re keeping an open mind with Kuzmenko and not locking themselves into just one answer when asked about their willingness to let the winger play his way out of his struggles.  Kuzmenko is in the first season of a two-year contract that carries a $5.5MM AAV; Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported over the weekend (video link) that teams had started calling Vancouver to gauge Kuzmenko’s availability.

Canucks Assign Linus Karlsson To AHL

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The Canucks have made a roster move prior to tonight’s game against Carolina as the team announced (Twitter link) that forward Linus Karlsson has been assigned to AHL Abbotsford.

The 24-year-old was recalled a week and a half ago, getting into two games with Vancouver to bring his season count to three.  He has been held off the scoresheet in those three contests while logging 10:26 per game.  Karlsson has been quite productive in the minors, however, picking up three goals and a dozen helpers in 17 appearances at that level.

Karlsson is in the final season of his two-year, entry-level deal that he signed in 2022 following a strong showing with SHL Skelleftea.  He’ll be a restricted free agent with salary arbitration rights this summer.

Yesterday, it was reported that center Pius Suter is nearing a return to Vancouver’s lineup after missing the last three weeks with a lower-body injury.  This roster move could be the precursor to activating Suter off injured reserve either later today or in the near future.

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