Let’s go back to July of 2015. Serena Williams had just won her 6^th Wimbledon tournament, Marvel’s “Ant-Man” was released in theatres, and the Vancouver Canucks acquired Brandon Sutter from the Pittsburgh Penguins. All shook the world to equal levels.

Since then, Sutter’s tenure with the Canucks has been up and down while he battles injuries and Father Time. Sutter has had his struggles throughout his time in Vancouver will be heading into the final year of the 5-year contract he signed with the club back in 2015.

Sutter finished last season with 17 points in 44 games as he missed time with an injury for the third straight season. Sutter’s value at this point in his career does not necessarily relate to his offensive production though, as his role is firmly in the bottom 6 of the Canucks’ forward group when the season starts next season. Sutter has the ability to provide value to the team if he can contribute more defensively, which he does have the potential to do.

The best-case scenario for Sutter is that he finds a way to stay healthy. I’m sure most Canucks fans don’t expect much from him in the offensive end, which is why a 25-point season would be a solid year for Sutter, who hasn’t surpassed the 20-point mark since 2017-18.

As I said, Sutter does have the ability to be positive defensively as he actually had a decent season last year when it came to limiting chances at even strength.

Sutter’s role on the Canucks does depend a lot on who makes the team out of camp. If Nils Höglander finds himself on the opening night lineup then you could see Sutter and Jay Beagle splitting time on the fourth line. If Hoglander needs time to develop, Sutter could end up playing with Adam Gaudette on the third line, which would put more of an emphasis on the 31-year old to contribute offensively. Personally, I’d like to see Zack MacEwen get a shot on the third line, which would again push Sutter to the fourth, where he can provide the most value in my opinion.

In the end, a healthy year for Sutter is a win, even if he finds himself bouncing in and out of the lineup.

The worst-case for Sutter is that he fumbles through another season full of injuries. Not only would that hurt the Canucks as they lose a piece of the bottom 6 that can also eat PK minutes if needed, but it would impact Sutter as he heads into free agency.

Unfortunately, Sutter’s inability to stay healthy in the past few years means that this is probably the more likely scenario. Another way Sutter could reach these totals is if he comes out of the gates very slow to start the season, which may force Travis Green to scratch the veteran forward more often than anticipated. I like Sutter’s upside more than Beagle’s, so ideally if it was a choice between the two, then you’d see Sutter in the lineup more often than not.

Literally, just stay healthy: It sounds so simple but obviously, it’s much easier said than done. It may not end up being with the Canucks, but if Sutter can stay healthy that will only help his contract negotiations next summer.

Showing defensive value: I’m sure the Canucks don’t expect much from Sutter in the offensive end, but if he can hold his own defensively and continue to effectively limit chances, then that will help the Canucks in other areas of the game. This will open up opportunities for the top 6 to work with a lead and not worry as much about spending time in their own end.

Being the locker-room guy: The loss of Chris Tanev may not be felt much on the ice with the addition of Nate Schmidt, but off the ice, there will be a pug-shaped void. If Sutter can be the guy to help take media pressure off the young stars of the Canucks while imparting some veteran wisdom then that will help Sutter’s value as well. He probably isn’t going to be worth his $4.375 million price tag, but he’ll have to do what he can to show his worth.

Minimal even-strength minutes: This would be more of a benefit for the Canucks as it probably means someone has been able to step up and take Sutter’s role. It may also help Sutter stay healthy and give him more of an opportunity to remain fresh through a shortened season.

A trade: This one is kind of tongue in cheek, but in an ideal world the Canucks wouldn’t be paying a bottom 6 forward over 4 million, especially with the albatross contract of Eriksson still on the books. If they can find a way to move Sutter to a team where he can find more success and not have every conversation about him come back to his contract then that can only be good for Sutter. This would also mean that a young Canucks player has made him expendable, which is great news for the team moving forward.

More injuries: For Sutter’s sake I hope he can stay healthy for a full season. I know not everyone agrees but I think he is still a solid bottom 6 forward, and as I’ve said I would rather see Sutter in the lineup than Beagle. Injuries could completely derail Sutter’s season and really hurt his chances of finding a contract in the Summer, and you don’t want to wish that upon anyone.

Defensive struggles: I’ve mentioned that Sutter has the capability to provide a positive impact in his own end. That being said, with all the injuries he’s gone through, there is the possibility that he struggles to keep up with the other team’s offensive threats. That would put more hard minutes on Bo Horvat and Elias Pettersson as they have to take more defensive zone time.

Time spent in the top 6: This would be more of a Canucks issue, but if we see Sutter spending extended minutes in the top 6 then something has gone terribly wrong. It would either mean that all of Virtanen, Hoglander, and MacEwen completely fell flat out of the gates or that the team had an early injury to one of their top forwards. Both of those scenarios are less than ideal.

Time spent scratched: If Sutter is scratched through most of the season then he has either been surpassed by a young player on the Canucks’ roster or he has fallen off. Ideally, it would be the former, but the latter would see players like Beagle or Eriksson taking Sutter’s minutes which wouldn’t necessarily be an upgrade.