March 4th, 2025
Alex Rickman
Does anyone else have a sinking feeling about what we might see happen between now and Friday?
With the NHL Trade Deadline a mere 3 days away, it feels like nobody is quite sure what the Canucks are set to do. Rumours are swirling about countless possible moves the Canucks could look to make, with some of these rumours seeming to strongly contradict what others indicate in terms of what direction the team may look to go in.
Right now, it feels like the majority of the fanbase wants the team to sell. While making the playoffs feels feasible at the moment, it’s nearly impossible to imagine the Canucks doing much if they get there. So, with that in mind, it makes sense for the team to part with some expiring contracts in order to acquire further assets to hopefully help right the ship ahead of the 2025-26 campaign. However, that doesn’t necessarily appear to be the direction in which the front office is planning to go.
As of right now, it seems as if the Canucks preference is to extend impending UFA Brock Boeser rather than trading him. However, the two sides are reportedly far apart in terms of their wants for a potential deal, so conventional wisdom would say that given the Canucks current position, their best course of action would be to deal the winger ahead of the deadline. This, unfortunately, may not be the case, as the organization seems to be weighing the idea of hanging onto Boeser as an internal rental, as was outlined in my last article. Simply put, this cannot happen. Not cashing in on Boeser in a strong seller’s market and losing the player for free would be an absolute disaster.
Following an Elliotte Friedman report that there was some noise surrounding the Canucks impending UFAs, Rick Dhaliwal added on Twitter that this may have to do with Pius Suter, who is also reportedly far from an extension. Suter is due for a big raise in the summer, and while he may be worth whatever a new contract may look like, it could be in the Canucks best interest to take what they can get in this hot market and look to a player like Aatu Räty to replace Suter’s role. Losing Pius Suter in a trade would hurt, but not nearly as much as letting him go for free if an extension can’t be reached. I hope to see the Swiss Army Knife return to Vancouver next year, but if that isn’t going to work, it's better to be compensated for him than to lose him to the open market.
Another player who could be on the move out of Vancouver before noon on Friday is Carson Soucy, who is in the midst of a disappointing season and has reportedly been shopped by the Canucks since shortly after Marcus Pettersson’s arrival. Trading Soucy could make sense in that the Canucks defence has become overcrowded with the additions of Marcus and Elias Pettersson, Second of His Name, and with Soucy’s performances this season having not been up to snuff. However, moving a player whose value is at an all-time low could also come back to bite Vancouver. Moving Soucy at some point may be necessary, but the wiser play may be to let him play his value back up before parting ways with the Albertan rearguard.
Could we see a bigger name leave Vancouver before Friday? Doubt has been cast upon the futures of Elias Petterson (EP40) and Thatcher Demko in Vancouver, so could we see something happen this week? While stranger things may have happened, the odds that we see the Canucks make a move like this right now is low. Between the team not wanting to get worse ahead of a perceived playoff push and these players' value both being down at the moment, it’s hard to justify parting ways with Petey or Demko in the next couple of days. We’ll see if either of these former All-Stars are Canucks come opening night next season, but for now, it would come as a shock to see either of these players on their way out of Vancouver this week.
Knowing that the Canucks want to push for the playoffs, we could also see them look to make additions to this roster ahead of Friday’s deadline. We know that, since at least the JT Miller trade, this team has been looking to add to their underperforming forward core, and would specifically like to add a young centre to their ranks. Could we see the Canucks pull the trigger on a deal for a forward before noon Friday?
Down the middle, a few names stand out. Dylan Cozens and Josh Norris stand out as young centres, aged 24 and 25, respectively, who could be on the move that would make sense for Vancouver. Both of these centres have been linked to possible moves away from their current teams, and fit the age and profile the Canucks are looking for. If the Canucks are wanting to add a young centre with term, these two could be among the best possible adds. Some have also speculated that the Canucks could be targeting a player who isn’t known to be on the trade market, so we’ll have to wait and see what, if anything, happens on this front.
At the end of the day, we don’t know what will happen at the deadline. It feels as if the Canucks want to be both buyers and sellers, and could potentially opt to make some moves that won’t necessarily be popular with fans. I hope to see cool heads prevail and for the Canucks to be able to accept that this current roster simply isn’t good enough and that they will need to part with some players to get where they need to be, but as of right now, I’m not sure if that will happen.
Right now, I believe that the Canucks will keep Brock Boeser in the hopes that an extension can be done, and that their biggest sale may be moving Pius Suter. I also have a hard time not seeing the Canucks getting something done to bolster their forward core. If they can pull this off without giving up too much and can extend Boeser at a reasonable rate, I might end up being fine with this. However, if Boeser is allowed to walk for free, that’s flat out unacceptable for a team in the position the Canucks are in.