Headlines

Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Canucks Rumors

Vancouver Canucks Activate Jack Studnicka

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

Earlier this evening, the Vancouver Canucks announced they have activated forward Jack Studnicka off of IR. No corresponding move was announced, and with Studnicka bringing the roster to a complete 23 players, no move was needed. Vancouver will host the Arizona Coyotes this evening.

Although the Canucks seem to have some other big pictures issues to deal with when it comes to turning their season around, such as Brock Boeser’s production and Thatcher Demko’s performance, and now injury, getting Studnicka back to health and rounding out the team’s depth is surely welcomed. The forward has just a goal and an assist so far this season in eight games, seven of which have come with Vancouver, but the once highly-touted prospect does have a knack for offense, turning in 35 points in 41 games at the AHL level last year. Getting some level of that production out of the winger at the NHL level would be much welcomed at this point in the season.

The 23-year-old was originally a second-round draft pick of the Boston Bruins back in 2017 and while he had played in parts of four seasons with Boston, he was never able to settle in as a regular contributor. Boston dealt him to Vancouver back in late October for goaltender Michael DiPietro and defenseman Jonathan Myrenberg.

Latest On Brock Boeser

at CDT | by 12 Comments

Earlier this evening, it was reported that Brock Boeser would be a healthy scratch for the Vancouver Canucks when they host the Arizona Coyotes this evening. However, after taking warmups with the team, Boeser was placed into the lineup for tonights game, says Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman.

Later this evening, on tonight’s 32 Thoughts segment Friedman added a bit more fuel to the fire if you will, discussing what might be happening off the ice. Friedman reports that the Canucks have given permission to Boeser’s representatives to talk to other teams about a potential move, though he cautions that neither the team nor Boeser’s agents have specifically confirmed this.

From afar, Vancouver deciding now is the time to trade Boeser might seem a bit confusing. For one, after struggling out of the gate this season, the team has rebounded nicely to put themselves in the playoff discussion at this point in the season, even if on the fringes. On top of that, Boeser has recorded 14 points in 18 games this season, good for 0.77 points-per-game, which is almost perfectly in-line with his career average of 0.79 points-per-game prior to this season.

However, known as a sharpshooter, Boeser’s 8.1% shooting-percentage is down from his career 13.2% he had prior to this season, not to mention he’s been shooting the puck less altogether, averaging 2.83 shots-per-game before this season, down to 2.05 in 2022-23. That’s resulted in just three of his 14 points coming on goals this season. Adding on to the problem, Boeser’s previous six games haven’t been his best, combining for just three points to go with a -6 rating and seven shots total.

What’s next for Boeser and Vancouver isn’t completely clear, but Friedman’s report does raise some eyebrows. For one, despite his struggles, Boeser is undoubtedly a dynamic offensive player that any number of teams would want to add into their lineup. When teams give permission for a player to speak with other teams, generally the reason for doing so is to see if they can work out an extension ahead of time, hopefully giving them a bigger return in a trade, however Boeser is still signed for another two seasons, bringing with him a $6.65MM cap hit.

Another fairly common reason a player may have permission to speak with other teams is to see who’s plans he might fit into with regards to playing time and role, perhaps if that player has been squeezed out in his current situation. Despite his struggles, it’s hard to imagine many teams wouldn’t view Boeser as anything but a valuable addition. Still, given Boeser’s rather large cap hit compared to his production, these conversations may be had to assure an acquiring team knows exactly what to expect in the case they have to absorb Boeser’s entire cap hit or pay Vancouver to retain some of it.

Brock Boeser To Be A Healthy Scratch Tonight

at CDT | by 2 Comments

  • It has been a bit of a tough season so far for Canucks winger Brock Boeser and there’s more tough news coming for him as head coach Bruce Boudreau confirmed to Sportsnet 650’s Brendan Batchelor (Twitter link) that winger Brock Boeser will be a healthy scratch tonight against Arizona. Boeser has just three goals so far through his first 18 games (although he does have 11 assists) and Boudreau is calling this decision “tough love”.  It sounds like this is a short-term decision but Vancouver will certainly need more from Boeser if they want to get back into the playoff picture; they sit five points out of the last Wild Card heading into today’s action.

Thatcher Demko Out Six Weeks

at CDT | by 1 Comment

The Vancouver Canucks have had an extremely difficult start to their season, and those difficulties continued with starting netminder Thatcher Demko going down with an injury. Today, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman issued an update on Demko’s injury timeline. Per Friedman, Demko is injured on a six-week timeline, and that timeline means the Canucks avoided a “worst-case scenario” with the injury.

The loss of Demko comes as a major blow to a Canucks franchise looking to build momentum and climb the standings. Like the Canucks as a whole, Demko has struggled so far this year. He has a .883 save percentage through 15 games, a significant decline from the .915 he posted in both 2021-22 and 2020-21. With a long recovery process in front of their starter, the Canucks will turn to backup Spencer Martin, who has a .900 save percentage in 10 games played.

Vancouver Canucks Recall Collin Delia

at CDT | by 2 Comments

Things are going from bad to worse for the Vancouver Canucks. After Thatcher Demko suffered an injury in last night’s game, the team recalled Collin Delia from the AHL. The recall is under emergency conditions, meaning there is an injury of some sort preventing the team from icing two healthy goaltenders.

So far, no update has been given on Demko’s status. But he was helped off the ice last night holding his right leg and was ruled out soon after.

While Demko hasn’t been good this season, losing him won’t help the Canucks turn things around. Spencer Martin hasn’t been much better and Delia has an .884 save percentage in the minor leagues this season.

The Canucks are now 9-12-3 on the year and it’s hard to imagine them getting back into the race without elite goaltending. Demko is their best chance at that, even with his struggles so far.

Kuzmenko's Agent Says Extension Talks Unlikely Until End Of Season

at CDT | by 1 Comment

Andrei Kuzmenko’s first season in North America has been a successful one as the winger enters play tonight sitting fourth on the Canucks in scoring with 11 goals and 10 assists in 22 games.  He’s also set to be an unrestricted free agent this summer for the second straight year except this time, he won’t be capped on entry-level restrictions.  While the two sides are eligible to work out an extension as early as January, it doesn’t appear that will be the case.  Appearing on CHEK’s Donnie and Dhali (video link), Kuzmenko’s agent Dan Milstein indicated that there are no contract talks planned for the near future:

Vancouver Canucks Recall Phillip Di Giuseppe

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

Nov 30: With Mikheyev fully back in the fold, Vancouver returned Di Giuseppe to Abbotsford Wednesday night, per the team.

Nov 29: After opting to waive him over a month ago, the Vancouver Canucks are bringing forward Phillip Di Giuseppe back up to the NHL. General manager Patrik Allvin announced his recall from the AHL’s Abbotsford Canucks Tuesday night.

Di Giuseppe comes to the NHL to potentially relieve Ilya Mikheyev, who could miss tonight’s game against the Washington Capitals with an illness. Both Di Giuseppe and Mikheyev were on the ice for warmups ahead of the game.

Now 29, Di Giuseppe is in his second year with the Canucks organization. He’s yet to score a goal this season in Abbotsford but does have five assists through seven games after approaching a point-per-game pace last season.

He has 201 games of NHL experience split between Carolina, Nashville, and the New York Rangers, and his a capable fourth-line plug-in when required.

As he has not spent more than 30 days on an NHL roster since clearing, Di Giuseppe will not require waivers again when the team opts to return him to Abbotsford.

Vancouver Canucks To Induct Roberto Luongo Into Ring Of Honour

at CDT | by 7 Comments

Former Vancouver Canucks All-Star netminder Roberto Luongo will be inducted into the team’s Ring Of Honour next season at an undetermined home game, as announced by the team Wednesday night.

Luongo, 43, was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame just a few weeks ago alongside a pair of Canucks legends, Daniel Sedin and Henrik Sedin. The team’s all-time leader in wins (252), Luongo backstopped the Canucks to the 2011 Stanley Cup Final, was twice a Vezina Trophy finalist, and won the 2011 Jennings Trophy alongside backup Cory Schneider.

While he was drafted by the New York Islanders and played more games for the Florida Panthers, he reached his greatest team success in Vancouver. Luongo never won a Vezina Trophy, but he was universally recognized as a top-five goalie in the league for most of his 1,044-game career. His .919 career save percentage is tied for eighth among goalies with at least 250 NHL games, and his 489 career wins are fourth all-time.

Luongo was so revered in the Canucks organization that the team even attempted to name him captain. Although he couldn’t wear the “C” on his jersey during games as a goaltender, he was technically the twelfth captain in franchise history from 2008 to 2010 before conceding the role to Henrik Sedin.

Canucks president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford gave a statement on the news:

We are proud to welcome Roberto to the prestigious list of Canucks Ring of Honour inductees. Roberto experienced many of his career highlights as a Vancouver Canuck and is deservingly viewed as one of the best goaltenders our game has ever seen thanks to those moments. He was a fierce competitor and a tremendous leader for this team, and we are honoured to be able to acknowledge his contributions to this organization and city.

Given the level of play Luongo delivered in Vancouver, and his legendary status in NHL history, having his name in the team Ring of Honour is full and well deserved. It’s a bit surprising to see the organization opt not to retire Luongo’s #1 completely, but it’s still an option should the team reconsider in the future.

Vancouver Canucks Reassign Vasily Podkolzin, Jack Rathbone

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The Vancouver Canucks assigned forward Vasily Podkolzin and defenseman Jack Rathbone to the AHL’s Abbotsford Canucks on Monday evening, according to a team tweet.

Podkolzin, 21, is enduring a bit of a classic sophomore slump. The 10th overall selection in 2019 has just three assists through 16 games, although he has been limited to playing just 12:34 per game. It’s his first demotion to the minors this season. It would be his first regular-season AHL contest if he suits up with Abbotsford. He had two points in two playoff games last season.

Similarly, it’s Rathbone’s first demotion of the season. He’s been a healthy scratch for most of the season, playing in six out of 22 games. He’s registered an assist and a -3 rating. The 23-year-old returns to Abbotsford, where he had a spectacular 40 points in 39 games last season.

For Vancouver, it could be a sign that Jack Studnicka is getting ready to come off injured reserve. He’s been out with a lower-body injury since November 15.

Latest On Bo Horvat

at CDT | by 5 Comments

During a difficult start to their season, one of the few bright spots on the Vancouver Canucks’ roster has been the play of captain Bo Horvat. Horvat currently ranks second in the NHL with 15 goals, and has 21 points in 19 games. But while his hot start is good news for Horvat and Canucks fans, it may be giving Vancouver’s management team some headaches. That’s because Horvat is a pending unrestricted free agent, and the better he plays, the larger the contract he’ll be able to receive this summer gets. And while they are undoubtedly thrilled from an on-ice perspective that Horvat is playing well, his hot start may complicate his future in Vancouver. As team president Jim Rutherford has said that the Canucks’ priority will be gaining long-term financial flexibility, not losing it, many have wondered if Horvat is pricing himself out of Vancouver’s long-term plans.

Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli reports that communication between Horvat’s representation and the Canucks have been “scarce,” and that there is a belief that contract talks between the two parties “broke off before training camp and have not resumed.” Since the going rate for productive top-six centermen is $7MM per year at the absolute minimum (with upwards of $8MM being the more realistic number) it’s fair to wonder if the Canucks have the desire to extend Horvat rather than deal him to a contender for a major compensation package.

Pro Hockey Rumors is not affiliated with National Hockey League, NHL or NHL.com

scroll to top