Canucks Army Monday Mailbag: May 9th

The Vancouver Canucks haven’t been relevant for an awfully long time. Such is the plight of the eliminated team that finishes third last in the entire league.

All the more so now that the college free agent market has all but withered. Wouldn’t you know it, it couldn’t have finished as the grande fait accompli that might make this season somewhat palatable. I mean, sure, the Canucks did land Troy Stetcher and Michael Garteig… then Drake Caggiula spurned them for the Edmonton Oilers. That’s gotta hurt. I mean, Edmonton over Vancouver. Just think about that for a second. Or don’t.

Yet through the malaise, you fine people keep peppering me with questions for the Monday Mailbag. All of which I’ll gladly answer, on the other side of the jump.

There are so many different layers to this question. Which top defenceman are we asking for? The Anaheim Ducks are likely to part ways with one of Sami Vatanen or Hampus Lindholm. I’d surrender the fifth overall for the latter of those two, but I remain skeptical of the former. Tyson Barrie out of Colorado is tempting, but I’m not sure I pull the trigger on that.

Regardless of handedness, Mikhail Sergachyov is the best defenceman in this draft. Though, it is worth noting, that Sergachyov plays the right side, in spite of his left-handedness. I’m higher than most on Sergachyov, but I think you can build a reasonable case for selecting him fifth overall. I expect he’ll fall somewhere between 8-12, though.

There are so many great options. Really, it’s a pick’em type situation. For me, it’s a two-horse race. You either take the plunge with Matthew Tkachuk and accept the inherent risk for the gaudy offensive upside, or go with Sergachyov. The best option, though, is probably to trade down and still find a way to secure the latter of those two. 

Well, I don’t think this is necessarily an apple to apple comparison. Not in my estimation. The thing about Dan Hamhuis is that he’s not too old. Not to contribute to the short-term health of this franchise. Hamhuis can absolutely further the Canucks cause as early as next season. The question becomes, how much of the future are you willing to mortgage for those added wins next season? I’m not just talking about the salary cap space and term. Think about the fact that the Canucks are already committed to nine waiver eligible defencemen for next season. If Hamhuis is in, a younger defender, likely, is out.

I honestly can’t offer you anything in the way of a worthwhile answer. I’m sorry. I really can’t. His scoring in the SHL suggests that he’s likely to make an impact, perhaps even a sizeable one, as early as next season. That’s far from a guarantee, though. Especially when one considers the gruesome knee injury that shortened his season.

Everything. P.K. Subban is probably one of, if not the single best part of the NHL.

It would take nothing. Because it wouldn’t happen. The Blue Jackets are not surrendering that pick. And if they were, oh, what a king’s ransom it would afford them.

“Where’s your tattoo, bro?!”

The question, really, is what is J.D. Burke. You shouldn’t trust him.

If nothing else, Jake Virtanen’s development as a two-way, transitional force last season verified his benevolent drafters meat and potato plan. Virtanen is that player. He will be that player for the foreseeable future, too.