February 28th, 2025
JC Clemas
We’re at the point where we’re already looking ahead to the offseason. Despite the fact that the Canucks are sitting in a playoff spot, it’s clear that the organization is more interested in building towards future seasons, and this offseason is likely to be a defining factor in what this team will look like going forward. The entire face of the Canucks could shift during the summer. The Canucks have $11.75 million in cap space for next season, and while a lot of their lineup is already set for next season, it’s really not a whole lot to work with. I’ll take you through each of the Canucks’ most relevant free agents, both on the RFA side and the UFA side. I’ll also rate each player on how important it is that the Canucks re-sign them, based on how instrumental they are to the team’s success and what their contract would likely look like.
RFAs
Aatu Räty
We’re starting off with the easiest decision to make of the bunch. At just 22 years old, Räty has already shown promise as a two-way centre at the NHL level. He’s been especially great on faceoffs, an area where the Canucks severely lack. Räty is progressing very well at the AHL level, going from 52 points in 72 games last season to 30 points in 31 games this season. Despite missing 20 games of the AHL season (from his time in the NHL), he leads the minor league team in points. He’s definitely going to be an important depth forward for Vancouver, hopefully projecting to be a 3C with the team. With Vancouver lacking centre depth following the Miller trade, he may need to be ready to make a permanent jump to the NHL next season. His contract will still be low in dollar value, and term obviously isn’t a concern with a 22-year-old, so there should be absolutely zero worries that this will get done.
RE-SIGN METER: 10/10
Arshdeep Bains
Bains has not found success at the NHL level but continues to be an effective contributor for Abbotsford. This season, Bains has 27 points in 32 AHL games, contrasted with his 1 point in 12 NHL games. Though I don’t envision him ever being a permanent NHLer for the big club, it is still worth keeping him around for the small club. Plus, on a 2-way contract, there’s really no reason not to. If they choose to let him walk, though, I highly doubt that it would have a large impact on Vancouver’s ability to win games.
RE-SIGN METER: 6/10
Max Sasson
Sasson has been a better player than Bains at the NHL level. He managed to keep himself in the lineup for two straight months (late November- late January), thanks mainly to the consistent game he was playing while fires broke out around him. Sasson put up 6 points in 24 games in his extended stint with Vancouver and continues to be an important piece of the Abbotsford club. Much like Bains, he’s not likely to be a permanent NHL piece for the organization. Also, like Bains, there’s no real reason not to give him a 2-way contract. He’s a great AHL player and a decently valuable replacement in the NHL.
RE-SIGN METER: 6/10
UFAs
Pius Suter
Now is when it starts to get juicy. Things have been all quiet on the Pius Suter contract front throughout the season, which feels strange. Considering how quickly the Canucks lept to re-signing Drew O’Connor after trading for him, I wonder why we haven’t heard much out of their contract talks with Suter. Are they waiting for the season to end like they did last year with Blueger and Joshua? Even then, we were hearing some chatter about those players’ futures with the team. There’s been nothing on Pius Suter, and it’s getting a little nerve-wracking.
Okay, maybe nerve-wracking is a stretch for a depth forward, but Suter’s value to this team is so unbelievably underappreciated. He’s the best defensive forward on the team, showcasing the talent, especially on the penalty kill. His efforts while down a man this season have been a key reason why the Canucks find themselves tied for 6th in the league in penalty kill percentage (81.8%) mere years after having one of the most dreadful shorthanded teams in NHL history.
Unlike Teddy Blueger, though, Suter’s value extends beyond just the PK. He’s now tied his career high in goals for a season with 15, placing him at 4th on the team. He’s been able to play in whatever lineup spot you want him to, from 1st line winger to 4th line centre. His hockey IQ is also the best on the team, which is a key reason why his defensive game is so good and also sees him getting into the right spots in the offensive zone.
Suter can probably head to free agency and get a lot more than the Canucks are willing to give him, and I wonder if his current asking price is too high. If you can re-sign him at around $4 million, I would say you should do it. It’s quite a price increase from his current $1.6m cap hit, but he’s earned it. With the cap going up as well, I’m more worried about keeping Suter on the team than I am about his cap hit.
RE-SIGN METER: 9/10
Derek Forbort
You know I’m a big fan of Derek Forbort this season. He’s been a beast defensively and is another key reason why our penalty kill is elite. He doesn’t add a single thing in the offensive zone, and most of the time, he can’t actually shoot the puck on net, but I don’t care. It’s just nice to have a shutdown defenseman who can play the most boring minutes of all time. With players like Hughes, Hronek, and even Myers, who can all make interesting things happen on the ice, Forbort is exactly the kind of guy we need. Especially with the other defensive defensemen we’ve tested (Soucy, Desharnais, Juulsen) failing miserably to do that job.
At the same time, do we actually need Forbort next season? He turns 33 within the week and clearly does not fit any long-term plans for the organization. Plus, the emergence of Elias Pettersson (the defenseman) and the fact that Carson Soucy is still signed for another year clogs up the left-handed defenseman depth after Quinn Hughes and Marcus Pettersson. The Canucks are likely better served finding a right-handed defenseman to fill the 3rd pairing spot. There are a decent amount of options in free agency this summer, though if the Canucks are looking at the likes of Cody Ceci, David Savard, or Jeff Petry, it would be best to just let Derek Forbort play on his off-hand.
RE-SIGN METER: 5/10
Noah Juulsen
Nah.
RE-SIGN METER: 0/10
Linus Karlsson
Karlsson fits the vibe of the RFA section more than the UFA section but fits the qualifications for a group 6 UFA. To fit the group 6 UFA conditions, according to PuckPedia, a player must be 25+, have played less than 80 career NHL games, and have 3+ professional seasons under their belt. So, the Canucks could find themselves losing Karlsson this offseason.
Karlsson isn’t incredible as an NHL player, though his most recent stint was his most effective, including his first career NHL goal. He has, however, torn up the AHL the past two seasons. Karlsson has followed up his 60 points in 60 games campaign last season with 27 in 22 so far. He’s a main reason why Abbotsford finds themselves competing for a playoff spot despite a slow start and an unstable roster. Like Bains and Sasson, there’s not much harm in bringing him back on a two-way contract, and I’d actually say he’s a more important signing than either of those two.
RE-SIGN METER: 7/10
Phil Di Giuseppe
Rick Tocchet LOVES this guy. I think it’s only because of his willingness to forecheck because I’m not sure there’s any other thing to really love PDG for. He’s just kind of the definition of a replacement-level player. Nothing really wrong with that. He has 6 points in 20 NHL games this season, which is an 82 game pace of 25 points. Honestly, not all that bad. But he’s 31 years old now and doesn’t fit any timeline for this franchise anymore. I think PDG could find a more recurring role in the NHL for a different team, and I don’t envision him wanting to return just to be forced into an AHL spot for most of the year. It’s not like PDG’s presence is really one that should be a deciding factor in this franchise’s success, so it’s really whatever.
RE-SIGN METER: 3/10
Brock Boeser
Without Boeser, this isn’t even an article. He’s quite clearly the big fish of this Canucks free agency class by FAR. Coming off a season where he scored 40 goals and 73 points, Boeser’s production has followed the trend of the other Canucks’ forward stars and died. Through 52 games, he has 36 points and is on pace for 52 points. Looking at these past two seasons, it’s easy to see how the Canucks and Boeser are two worlds apart right now. There are many reasons to keep him, but there are also a couple of issues with re-signing him long-term.
First off, there’s his play. Boeser is the best pure goal scorer on the Canucks. Last year finally unlocked the goal-scoring potential that he had inside him. We know all about his great wrist shot, but he also has a powerful slap shot that we haven’t seen be used a whole lot this season. According to NHL EDGE data, Boeser is above the 90th percentile for top shot speed, average shot speed, 90-100 mph shots, and 80-90 mph shots. Of those statistics, his top shot speed is the most impressive, clocking in at 94.86 mph. That shot puts him in the 97th percentile of the league and is a whole 11 mph higher than the league average top shot speed.
However, beyond his shot, Boeser often finds himself struggling. He’s shown hints of having playmaking ability, primarily in the 2021 season, but we haven’t seen much of that side of Boeser recently. He also was pretty underrated defensively last season, but this season is not a guy that the Canucks can rely on in the defensive end. He doesn’t kill penalties, and he’s not physical, and those are two key traits that Rick Tocchet loves in his players. Then there’s his speed. The league average top skating speed this season is 22.13 mph. Boeser’s is 21.76 mph, placing him below the 50th percentile in the league. He’s only 28 years old now and practically in his prime, so that number only stands to get worse.
Boeser is a great player, but his role on the team is more of a supporting cast. He needs to be playing with an effective centre to be at his best, and ever since that 2021 season, he hasn’t been able to command a line by himself. That being said, we’ve seen so much potential from him, and though the results haven’t always been there, he clearly has it inside of him. He was also arguably the Canucks’ best forward in the playoffs last season, and one must wonder how game 7 against Edmonton would’ve turned out if he were present. He’s got the clutch factor (see game 4 against Nashville).
Then, there’s the contract itself. The Canucks and Boeser have been in completely separate worlds in this area. Boeser wants term, and the Canucks don’t want to give it to him. Frank Seravalli recently reported that Boeser turned down a 5 year contract worth $8 million annually, and the Canucks are prepared to make one more offer to him. It’s actually surprising to me that the issue has revolved more around the term than the money. While having a short stint on the injured list earlier this season due to a concussion and having the issues with his blood clotting during the playoffs, Boeser’s injury history isn’t very extensive. Plus, the Canucks were willing to throw 7 years at Jake DeBrusk. And while DeBrusk’s dollars are certainly lower than what Boeser would get, he also hasn’t scored at the same pace as Boeser until this season. I would absolutely give Boeser the 7 years that DeBrusk got. His loyalty to the team while things were grim should definitely be taken into account, and it’s evident that Boeser is loved by his teammates. He just seems like a great guy, and it would be a shame to lose him.
It’s a business, though, and the front office seems to be pretty firmly in that 8x5 zone. Boeser’s potential contract would eat up a lot of the cap space that the Canucks have leftover for next season, and would make it tougher to fill more gaps in the lineup. There’s a lot of interest in Boeser right now throughout the league, and the team could potentially start a bidding war to maximize their return rather than just lose Boeser in free agency for nothing. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see what they decide to do.
RE-SIGN METER: 7/10