2023-24 Trade Targets: Part 3

March 2nd, 2024

Alex Rickman

Less than a week remains before the NHL’s trade deadline, and questions are starting to be asked by the fans about what may be in store for the Canucks ahead of March 8th. The Canucks have failed to recapture the form they held from October through January since returning from the All-Star break, with some fans wondering whether or not the team will be able to re-find this form at all in time for the playoffs. While it would be premature to worry about the Canucks ability to return to form due to a single rough patch, it’s clear that there is still room for improvement on the roster. Let’s take one final look at what we could see the Canucks do on the trade market ahead of next Friday. 

(Players mentioned in our most recent deadline preview article will not be included on this list. To read that article, please click here.)

Jake Guentzel 

After being linked to the Canucks for several weeks in December and January, rumours of Guentzel joining the Canucks seemed to die out after the Canucks traded for Elias Lindholm. However, with the Canucks top six, particularly Elias Pettersson, struggling of late, the Canucks once again appear to be in the market for a high-end goalscorer. While currently out due to an upper-body injury, Guentzel is slated to return to action not long after the trade deadline should he avoid any setbacks and has been producing at over a point per game rate while healthy this season. Guentzel’s production can’t be questioned, but that doesn’t mean the Canucks won’t have to be careful should they choose to target the winger. Guentzel is set to hit free agency this summer, and he will not be cheap to re-sign. In addition, the asking price for the Penguins to give him up will be steep, and the Canucks can expect to face quite a bit of competition for his services. Vancouver is already slated to have to find a way to re-sign Elias Pettersson, Filip Hronek, and Elias Lindholm among many others this offseason, so would adding another big-name player at a very high asking price be the wisest use of the Canucks assets? There’s no questioning the talent Guentzel brings, and having him in Vancouver would be an incredible help for this team, but the Canucks will definitely need to consider their options and the asking price well before pulling the trigger on a deal. 

Frank Vatrano

Far from unfamiliar with being moved on or around deadline day, Vatrano’s career year in Anaheim seems almost certain to have earned him a chance to move to a contender ahead of this year's postseason. With 27 goals scored already this year, Vatrano earned himself a trip to the All-Star game in Toronto, where he was able to play alongside several potential new Canucks teammates as a member of Team Hughes. Unlike other forwards on the market, Vatrano is not a pure rental, being under contract until the end of 2025 at $3.65 million. While certainly not a big player, Vatrano is capable of holding his own in physical situations and has even become a strong penalty killer. However, the cost to acquire Vatrano, like Guentzel, is not expected to be cheap, and the Canucks will have to be comfortable making yet another big trade with a division rival should they decide to pull the trigger. Additionally, while he may not play a small game, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Canucks not be thrilled by the idea of adding another small forward to their core. However, should the Canucks decide that they need to make a big move and that Guentzel may be too expensive, it’s hard to find an option that would work better than Frank Vatrano. 

Nick Seeler

Nicknamed Nicky Nails by Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli, Seeler is a near-perfect fit for the blue-line Rick Tocchet and the Canucks coaching staff have been building. Seeler is a hard-working, physical defenceman, perfect for the bottom pair of any contending team, and with a profile that seems indicative of strong performances come playoff time. Seeler is also on one of the best contracts of anyone on the market this year, with a cap hit of only $800k set to expire this summer. It’s unclear what Seeler would be looking for in an extension, but with the number of expiring contracts on the Canucks backend, perhaps adding and extending Seeler could help relieve a problem that could arise for the Canucks front office this offseason. However, like with all seemingly good deals, there is a catch. First of all, defencemen, in particular, can be very expensive around the trade deadline, so while Seeler may be a third-pairing type of player, the Canucks may have to pay a premium for his services. Secondly, while his contract is an incredible asset right now, extending Seeler won’t come as easily as any buying team may hope. The Flyers would prefer to extend Nicky Nails rather than trade him, but reportedly have not been close with Seeler’s camp. If an extension can be worked out, or if Seeler is available for a reasonable price, this is a deal the Canucks should be all over. However, if he will cost the team an arm and a leg to acquire, the Canucks will need to think hard about whether or not adding to the blueline is a top priority. 

Pavel Buchnevich

Like Vatrano, Buchnevich will be one of the most coveted forwards on the market not named Jake Guentzel. Since his arrival with the Blues, Buchnevich has played at a near-point-per-game pace, doing so with a cap hit of $5.8 million. Buchnevich would be a valuable addition to any team pushing for the playoffs not only this season but next as well, as his contract is not set to expire until the summer of 2025. That, however, may work against the Canucks or any other team looking to bring the Russian winger in, as Blues GM Doug Armstrong is under no pressure to get a deal done this offseason, so St Louis can afford to be patient and wait for an offer they really like for Buchnevich. On ability alone, Buchnevich is an incredibly valuable asset, so factoring in the leverage that the Blues front office has here, it’s hard to imagine a world in which Buchnevich is traded at a more reasonable price than the one a team would expect to pay for Guentzel or Vatrano. As a player, Buchenvich would be a great fit for this Canucks team, and having him locked in for next season would be a huge boost. However, with the strong position the Blues have in any negotiations, it would be hard to win a trade for Pavel Buchnevich, so an option like Vatrano may end up making more sense. 

Alexandre Texier

Texier has shown a lot of promise at points, but missed time due to a mix of injuries and personal reasons have stunted some of his development, leading to public criticism of his play from some in the Jackets organization. The French winger is still young enough to find his way again and bring some value to a team though, so with a much-needed change of scenery, Texier could still bring some of the promise he showed earlier in his career. While for a contending team like the Canucks he may not immediately be a needle mover, Texier is inexpensive enough that one could see the Canucks taking a flyer on his potential. As well, Texier is still a solid depth piece for a good team even if he can’t find a way to hit his maximum potential, and the Canucks could certainly use some extra strength in their bottom six. Overall, while Texier would not be the biggest difference maker the Canucks could add, he could prove to be a good value add/reclamation project for a team looking to make a push and who could provide him with an environment in which he could hopefully get his career back on track. 

Jordan Eberle

The one-time Canadian World Juniors hero finds himself on an expiring contract with a Kraken team currently sitting a ways out of a playoff spot, so will likely find himself moved out of Seattle before deadline day. While, as discussed with Frank Vatrano, trading with a division rival comes with its risks, Rutherford and Allvin appear unafraid of making deals in the division. Eberle also offers an attractive profile for a team making a playoff push, providing a good veteran presence and having a strong playoff resume in past appearances with the Islanders and Kraken, so this could be a risk that the Canucks front office decide that they’re willing to take. Eberle also has a reputation as being a big game player, and any player with the ability to make their mark in important moments as he can be valued by front offices, especially those about to play playoff hockey. While he may not have the same ceiling as a player like Jake Guentzel, Eberle could be a good choice as a more affordable option to the top pieces on the market, which could potentially be the factor that sees him make the move a few hours north up the I5. 

Tyler Toffoli

With Chris Tanev now off the market following a move to the Dallas Stars, I needed a different old friend to talk about on this list. Enter past Canucks deadline addition Tyler Toffoli. Added from the Kings ahead of the 2020 deadline, Toffoli’s brief stint with the Canucks could be considered something of a success but was far shorter than it should have been. If rumours are to be believed, Toffoli instructed his agent to get a deal done in Vancouver but was not contacted by then Canucks GM Jim Benning, leading Toffoli to haunt the Canucks in 2021’s North Division as a member of the Montreal Canadiens. Now with the New Jersey Devils, who are currently on the outside looking in, teams are calling to ask about Toffoli. The Devils currently do not want to move him, and would rather push to reenter the playoff picture, but perhaps a good enough offer could tempt them to part with the pending UFA. Like with others on this list, there would be some concerns with the Canucks mortgaging the future in order to add a player who could choose to walk in the offseason, especially in the case of Toffoli who has already done this in Vancouver once. However, Toffoli clearly enjoyed his time spent as a Canuck, so maybe the Canucks would have a better chance at being able to re-sign him than some other teams would. This will be an important part of the homework the Canucks front office will have to do before parting with assets to bring him in, but there is certainly a world in which a reunion with Toffoli could be a well-advised move for the Canucks. 

Jon Merrill

With Tyler Myers now out week to week and Carson Soucy having dealt with a few injuries over the course of the season, Vancouver may look to add depth on the backend. While Nick Seeler makes a strong case to be the player the Canucks target for their blueline, Minnesota defenceman Jon Merrill is another option worth considering who could well be on the move in the next week. Merrill provides little to no value on offence but is a solid stay-at-home defenceman, effectively using his large frame in a way that the Canucks coaching staff are sure to appreciate. Under contract until the end of 2025 at $1.2 million, Merrill would be a fairly inexpensive piece for the Canucks to add, both in terms of contract and trade value. Merrill wouldn’t be a real needle mover like a defenceman like Sean Walker or some of the other available players would be, but if the Canucks are just after an inexpensive player to provide an upgrade over Mark Friedman, Merrill would provide them with just that. 

So, what now? In addition to my recommendations of Brandon Duhaime and Anthony Duclair from my last deadline targets article, I think there are a few players on this list who would be worth the Canucks time to target. The first player I want to talk about comes with a caveat. For some time, it has been my opinion that Jake Guentzel would be the perfect player for the Canucks to add should they opt to make a big swing. My opinion of Guentzel as a player has not changed, and I still firmly believe that he would be an excellent addition to the Canucks to make, but the Canucks circumstances have changed as a result of the Elias Lindholm trade. 

Not only did the Canucks give up quite a bit in the way of assets to acquire Lindholm, but the Canucks added another big extension to their list of tasks this offseason, which would again be the case if Guentzel were to be brought in. If the Canucks can go into a deal knowing that they will be able to extend Jake Guentzel for a reasonable salary, then I would be prepared to see them make another big deal in order to land the best player available to them. However, if this isn’t on the cards, the Canucks should be prepared to settle for a lesser option than Guentzel to preserve some of their assets, or at least spend them on pieces they would be more likely to be able to retain. 

If the price for Guentzel proves to be prohibitive, both Frank Vatrano and Jordan Eberle make intriguing cases of their own. Eberle has a stronger playoff resume, but it’s hard to ignore how well Vatrano has been playing this year and has been no slouch in the playoffs himself. Ultimately, either one would be a great addition to the Canucks forward core, so it would come down to price when deciding who would be the better add. There are other lanes that the Canucks could go down should the price be prohibitive for both Eberle and Vatrano, such as the previously mentioned Anthony Duclair, but I believe that one of these two could be among the most valuable possible top-six adds for Vancouver. 

March 8th will be an interesting day for Canucks fans, but we can only hope for the best. Jim Rutherford and Patrik Allvin have so far managed to avoid making any disastrous trades, so let’s hope that this trend can continue and that the Canucks can have a strong deadline to help push this team over the top come playoff time.