Free Agency Roundup: What's Happened and What Could Come Soon
July 6th 2023
Alex Rickman
The Canucks have been one of the league's more active teams in the early goings of free agency, having signed 5 new players to the team and extending another. Patrik Allvin doesn’t appear to be done making moves either and will look to free up some cap space one way or another in order to facilitate the additions he wants to make. But how will the players the Canucks have added fit into the team next season, and what kind of moves could we see being made before the start of next season to continue improving the roster? Let’s take a look at what the newest members of the Vancouver Canucks will be able to bring to the team, and see where they may look to sure up the roster ahead of the 2023-24 campaign.
Signings made
Teddy Blueger- 1 year, $1.9M AAV
The Canucks penalty kill has been absolutely abysmal over the past few seasons, so adding a player like Blueger to the forward core should immediately help this. Blueger is no offensive dynamo but has made a name for himself in the NHL as one of the league's premier defensive forwards and penalty killers. This profile is what lead the Vegas Golden Knights to acquire him from the Pittsburgh Penguins ahead of the playoff run that eventually saw them and Blueger win a Stanley Cup, making few defensive mistakes along the way. It’s unclear if the Canucks view Blueger as a third or fourth-line player in Vancouver, but wherever he is in the lineup, he can be expected to provide a defensive profile that the Canucks bottom 6 desperately need.
Ian Cole- 1 Year, $3M AAV
While this may be more money than some Canucks fans thought Cole was worth, I don’t mind the contract at all. Cole is a physical, stay-at-home defenceman that the Canucks defence lacked without Luke Schenn, and could potentially fill roles on almost any pair given his ability to slot in comfortably on the left or right sides. The best part of this contract, in my opinion, is how movable it should be at the trade deadline if the Canucks are forced to sell, while also not being an issue at all for the Canucks to retain should they be in a position to make the postseason. Cole has had some issues staying out of the penalty box in recent seasons, but if this can be put under control and he can simply be a reliable and physical defensive presence, he should do a lot of good for the Canucks back end.
Akito Hirose- 2 Years, $787K AAV
Hirose looked very steady in his brief stint with the Canucks at the end of last season, leaving many Canucks fans excited to see what the future holds for the undrafted defenceman. The first year of this extension will be a two-way deal, with the second year as a one-way, which will give Hirose a chance to get lots of game time in the AHL this year before making a full breakthrough into the NHL in the second year. This is a great move for the Canucks, but should be setting off some alarm bells for Jack Rathbone, who in all likelihood will be moved in the near future as a result of the left side of the Canucks defence now looking fairly solid for the future without him. It’ll be sad to see a promising talent like Rathbone go, but unfortunately, these things are inevitable in sports.
Matt Irwin- 1 Year, $775K AAV (Two-way)
A BC boy, Irwin seems set to step into what was Kyle Burroughs’s role as the Canucks 7th defenceman next season. A highly competitive defensive defenceman, the 35-year-old from Victoria gives the Canucks a solid stay-at-home, penalty-killing defenceman to slot in on the bottom pair when called upon. Irwin won’t dazzle anyone with his offensive game but can make up for this with a simple yet effective game that won’t result in many mistakes being made. If Irwin can be an effective player in his home province in what could turn out to be his final NHL season, it will be a fantastic send-off for the journeyman defender.
Zach Sawchenko- 1 Year, $775K AAV (Two-way)
With Collin Delia departing, it’s not 100% clear who the Canucks backup goalie will be next season, but as it stands it will likely be one of Spencer Martin, Arturs Silovs, or Zach Sawchenko. While Martin or Silovs seem like the most likely candidates for the job, Sawchenko should be able to provide Abbotsford with good help in the net and gives Vancouver another option for a call-up should one of their goalies go down. I believe that Spencer Martin should spend next season backing up Thatcher Demko while Arturs Silovs gains valuable experience starting 60+ games in the AHL, but if Silovs’ services are needed in Vancouver, Sawchenko can comfortably slot into the starting role for the farm team.
Carson Soucy- 3 Years, $3.25M AAV
The crown jewel of the Canucks free agent signings, Carson Soucy signed for a lower rate than what the majority of fans assumed he would cost. The former Seattle Kraken and Minnesota Wild defenceman could be utilized a few different ways in Vancouver, including potentially playing on his off side to be partnered with Quinn Hughes on the Canucks top pair, or staying on the left side to join forces with Filip Hronek. Soucy’s aggressive, defence first style of play should go well with Hughes or Hronek’s puck-moving style, and his willingness to protect his teammates won’t go unnoticed on a Canucks team that has for a few years lacked bite. Soucy proved to be a key piece on Seattle’s defence down the stretch and will hope to do the same in Vancouver over the next 3 years.
What happens now?
The Canucks likely aren’t done making moves, and will likely try to free up some cap space via trades before adding more players in free agency. Rumours have linked Tyler Myers to a potential move to the Sharks over the past week, so we will see if this comes to fruition, but there are certainly other potential moves we could see the Canucks make to open up cap space. In addition to Myers, players like Conor Garland, Brock Boeser despite his request to stay, or even Anthony Beauvillier could find themselves on the way out of Vancouver in order to free up some spending money. Boeser would make the most sense to move seeing as he’s the highest-paid of these players and has the longest remaining contract of any of them except for Conor Garland, but these factors combined with his struggles to stay healthy and get his play back up to the standard of his rookie season could make a move easier said than done. Beauvillier may be the easiest of the players mentioned to move due to him making the least money and being a free agent next summer combined with his good play down the stretch in Vancouver, but these factors will also mean Vancouver is likely to want to keep him around more than any of the others. Freeing up cap space in a flat cap world is far from an easy task, but the Canucks will do everything in their power to have the flexibility to continue improving the roster.
If this cap space is opened up, what might we be able to expect the Canucks to do with it? There are a few players that the Canucks have been linked to who are still on the market at the moment. It seems likely at the moment that former Anaheim Ducks forward Maxime Comtois will be joining the Canucks once some cap space has been cleared to make way for him, further bolstering the forward core. The 24-year-old scored a career-high 16 goals in 55 games during the shortened 2020-21 season but is yet to hit double digits since then. Comtois is young enough to have a shot at bouncing back and carving out a niche for himself in the middle 6, and his large frame and gritty game make it easy to see how he would fit into Rick Tocchet’s system. The other player on the market who the Canucks have been linked to is Matt Dumba, who may not be the best-received potential signing for the front office should he become a Canuck. Dumba has been linked to a move to the Pacific Northwest for a few years now, but no trade was ever made, and Dumba has now entered unrestricted free agency. While the right side of the Canucks defence does still look a little thin, it’s hard to see how Dumba, who is known for being an error-prone defensive player, would help fill this hole. It’s unclear what kind of a contract Dumba would be able to command from a front office, but if he’s being paid with the expectation of him slotting into a team's top 4, the Canucks should steer clear of Dumba.
If the Canucks are looking to bring in reclamation projects like Comtois, another player who may appeal would be Filip Zadina, who is in the process of having his contract with the Detroit Red Wings terminated. Zadina, who was taken just 1 pick before Quinn Hughes joined the Canucks in the 2018 draft, has struggled to find his groove with the Red Wings, and it has been agreed upon by him and the team that a change of scenery is in everyone’s best interest. While the Canucks aren’t currently in need of help on the wing, adding a player with Zadina’s upside on a low AAV show-me contract may prove to be worth their while. Another former Red Wing in Pius Suter could also wind up in Vancouver and may take over as 3C while Teddy Blueger slides down to the bottom line. Suter, 27, has proven that he can be a reliable 15-goal scorer while playing for weaker teams in the NHL, and could maybe even add to this production if given better wingers to work with as a Canuck. Jim Rutherford and Patrik Allvin showed interest in signing Suter when he was first set to make the move to North America from the Swiss League, so it wouldn’t come as much of a surprise to see them pounce on the chance to bring him to their organization.
As the offseason drags on and training camp and the preseason approach, more and more players will continue finding new homes in the NHL. If Patrik Allvin is in fact not done adding to the roster, then it will be interesting to see who may land in Vancouver over the coming weeks and months, and what moves may be made to accommodate incoming players. If the Canucks are able to avoid making any major mistakes this offseason that will hinder the teams' ability to re-sign key pieces next summer and beyond, then we can call this a successful free agency period. However, if the front office go big game hunting before the season and end up overpaying in an effort to win now, it could wind up setting the team back for years. Let’s all hope that they keep doing what they’ve been doing so far and keep things simple.