The Vancouver Canucks continue to look for a suitable defenseman to skate alongside Quinn Hughes, and multiple forwards may become trade chips to make this happen.
While they've certainly improved on the blue line, the Canucks are still multiple defensive pieces away from becoming true contenders in this league that is tougher than ever to compete.
Key Offseason Additions such as Carson Soucy, Ian Cole and Filip Hronek (acquired at the end of last season) have bolstered their defense, and it showed during their triumphant 8-1 victory over the Oilers on Wednesday night. However, they have yet to find a long-term fit for Quinn Hughes for the foreseeable future.
Trade-Bait Canucks
Multiple Canucks players have surfaced in the rumor mill as potential trade bait, those players are Conor Garland and Brock Boeser.
Garland plays a grinder role on the Canucks top line alongside Pettersson and Kuzmenko. He could become a valuable trade chip to fetch a solid defenseman in return. The 27-year-old winger recently received permission from the team to speak with other clubs, according to Elliotte Friedman.
Patrick Johnson of The Vancouver Province reports an inside source claims the winger had been open for a trade for at least a year. It has also been reported that Patrik Allvin and Jim Rutherford have explored moving Garland since joining the club in 2022.
Garland is signed through 2025-26 with an AAV of $4.95 Million, also lacking no-trade protection. It will be very difficult for the Canucks to move his contract without retaining cap space, as most teams have little to none available.
Garland recently changed agents, and will not be discussing trades as his focus has shifted solely onto the 2023-24 season.
Potential trade returns
Daily Faceoff's Frank Seravalli reported on Tuesday that the Columbus Blue Jackets are looking to move a defenseman. The Carolina Hurricanes also have a surplus of blueliners and could use some additional offensive weapons. Another potential trade partner could be the New York Islanders, who are looking for more up-front production.
Some potential return pieces from the Blue Jackets, and their AAV are Damon Severson ($6.25M), Andrew Peeke ($2.7M) and Adam Boqvist (2.6M). The Canucks currently have no cap space available until they can move out a contract like Garland ($4.95M) or Boeser ($6.65M).
Boeser's stock has increased following his 4-goal performance on Wednesday night. He could fetch a solid return on the trade market, as he brings plenty of scoring depth to the table.
Separating their two best defensemen makes sense
Quinn Hughes spoke on playing with Filip Hronek prior to the season opener on Wednesday night.
"(I) probably haven't played with a player as good as him. He's really skilled, can move the puck, can see things, can defend, can skate... They maybe wanted to split us up but i'm happy we're together".
While the two played well together, the Canucks still need to find another suitable RHD to play alongside Quinn Hughes as the season gets under way. Having the two-best puck moving defensemen on the same pairing may not be liable for the long term.
Separating their two best defenseman will help out the Canucks back-end depth, and give Ian Cole a better partner to work with on the second pairing.
More Trade-Bait Canucks
The third pairing of Soucy-Myers remains unlikely to change once Soucy returns from his leg injury (week-to-week). There have been attempts to move Myers during the offseason, and all have been unsuccessful.
Myers would be a perfect chip for any team trying to remain above the cap floor, as he is only owed $1M for the remainder of his contract through 2023-24, yet takes up $6 Million in cap space. He received a $5M bonus during the offseason. He could then be flipped for a draft pick prior to the playoffs.
The issue with this is, there are currently no teams struggling to stay above the cap floor, making it more unlikely that the Canucks will end up with Tyler Myers until his contract expires at the conclusion of the 2023-24 season.
Should the Canucks keep Hughes-Hronek as their top pairing?
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