Monday Mailbag: Centre Depth, Nikita Tryamkin’s Return, and Lots of Trade Talk

Ideally I would like to see them add another centre who could provide some scoring punch in the bottom-six. Gaudette could be that guy one day, but I don’t think he’s there yet. Sam Gagner probably deserves to be on the roster over some of their other options, but he looks more comfortable on the wing. I don’t think a team can have long-term success with two centres on the roster who don’t provide any offense, so I would look to replace Sutter with someone a bit more playmaking ability and have Jay Beagle absorb most of his duties.

I think anyone would be available for the right price, but I honestly don’t have any clue what that would be. Carolina has been one of the more confusing NHL teams this season and I feel unqualified to specualte as to what exactly is going on or what they would be looking for. They need goal-scoring, but so do the Canucks, and they aren’t moving any of their core players. Sven Baertschi might be attractive to them, but I doubt he’d be able to net any of their big-name defenders as a return on his own.

There would be a market for both players, but if you want to make room for Gaudette I don’t think moving out a winger makes sense. Gaudette has the potential to bring a lot of value to the team, but if he’s going to do it he has to learn to play down the middle at the NHL level. They also get a lot of the same things Sutter brings to the table from Jay Beagle, which makes him expendable. I’m not against moving on from either player, but Sutter would be my first choice.

The Canucks shouldn’t trade for anyone on an expiring contract, regardless of who they are.

I think Sutter could net the poor man’s version of the haul you’d expect from a big name player. He won’t get you a first and an A-prospect, but he might get you a second and a B-prospect from the right team. He’s got name recognition and playoff teams are always looking to shore up their penalty killing.

I doubt it. I think the right team would be interested, but with him toiling away in the minors and another year on his deal after the season ends, I don’t think any team would realistically make an offer that would make it worth the salary they’d have to retain. Gagner could eventually get moved, but I think it’s more likely they wait until the summer at the earliest.

To be honest, I can’t see him returning regardless of what happens with Nikolay Goldobin. He’s had a rather underwhelming season in the KHL and by all accounts just didn’t seem that invested in the team or the city of Vancouver and was happy to return home at the end of his season. It’s justifiable, given he has no ties to North America whatsoever and struggled to get ice-time when he was with the Canucks. More importantly, they just don’t have room for him unless a trade is made. The Canucks don’t seem to have any desire to move on from Chris Tanev at this stage, they’re committed to Erik Gudbranson until 2021, and Troy Stecher is basically the only young right-handed defenseman in their system with a clear future in the NHL. Until something changes the possibility of a Tryamking return looks like a fantasy.

Call me Vincenzo Natali, because I gotta go with “cube”.

Yes. By just about any meaningful metric (including something as simple as even-strength goal-differential) Erik Gudbranson is one of, if not the, worst defender in the game since arriving in Vancouver. It’s really that simple. Luke Schenn provides the same attributes at a lower cost and has a better (albeit still underwhelming) statistical profile.

While I don’t think the Canucks have played like a playoff-calibre team this season, having a player like Elias Pettersson in the lineup makes it difficult to put a ceiling on what they can do. High-end talents like him have been able drag bad teams to the playoffs in the past, so it’s within the realm of possibility that the team could be headed for its first playoff berth since 2015. That having been said, there’s a real danger that comes with dropping an elite talent onto a bad roster, too. A full season of Connor McDavid and a lights-out season from Cam Talbot were enough to get a mediocre Edmonton Oilers into the playoffs in 2016-17, but it hasn’t exactly worked out in their favour. Fast forward just two seasons into the future and a trigger-happy Peter Chiarelli has basically dismantled that team due to a series of decisions that arose from the belief that the team was closer to contention than it actually was. Even if we set aside all the practical arguments, I’m still not on board with the team making the playoffs if only because the  thought that an Oilers-like situation could arise in Vancouver scares me. The last time they were remotely competitive, the front office had a year-and-a-half long run of poor trades and acquisitions that are still holding the team back now. I think there’s a case to be made that the risk of making the playoffs this season outweighs the risk of missing the playoffs even if you ignore the possible trades the team could potentially be missing out on.

As far as whether or not they can afford it? I don’t think they have to trade both players by any stretch, but they have to trade someone, not only to stock up on assets that can help them when they’re finally rounding the corner, but to make room on the roster for the prospects in the system that are knocking on the door. I think that conversation has to start with Alex Edler because of his age and the return he could command. If he really can’t be convinced to waive his NTC, then you have to look at the market for Tanev.

Players don’t stay young forever, and I can’t see the Canucks becoming a contender by throwing money around in free agency or scraping by with what’s in the system now. The only way this team can have a chance at a Stanley Cup someday is to add a couple of high-end young players into the mix that can develop and hit their peak around the same time that Pettersson, Hughes, and Boeser are reaching their prime. That can’t happen if the front office just sits on their hands and makes the picks they’re allotted every year. They’ll need to add a few picks or prospects, and that can’t happen if they don’t move a big piece. If the goal is to eventually win a Stanley Cup, trading one of Edler or Tanev will go a long way, and missing out on one quick first round-exit early on in the team’s development is a small price to pay.