Monday Mailbag: Milan Lucic Edition

I think it would depend on who else is coming back. If the offer is Lucic and Puljujarvi for Eriksson and Virtanen straight up, the Canucks would be wise to think twice. I’m not convinced they’re getting the better end of the deal in  terms of either player coming back. I was really high on Jesse Puljujarvi as a prospect, and I’m not convinced Virtanen has another gear; but at some point Puljujarvi has to actually do something to convince people he’s more than just a failed prospect. The NHL is very much a “what have you done for me lately?” league and Jake Virtanen had 17 goals last year while Puljujarvi continued to struggle for a third straight year.

Puljujarvi’s upside could very well make the deal worth the risk, but if I’m taking Lucic back too I’d be looking for Edmonton to add.

There are some issues I can see here for the Oilers. At some point, taking back Chris Tanev and Ben Hutton undoes the point of trading Milan Lucic in the first place, which is to get cap relief. I’m also not sure adding Tanev and Hutton is enough to justify the Oilers sending back a top 10 pick. I could realistically see any and all of these pieces getting moved in a deal or deals involving both teams, but I’m not sure this specific proposal quite fits together.

I’ll defer to my superior, Ryan Biech, on this one. Apparently, the NMC remains in effect after the trade, but could be waived again for the expansion draft. I would imagine this would be something the Canucks would take into consideration before making a deal, and I would hope that any Lucic deal would only occur if he agrees to waive the NMC for the expansion draft.

A lot of people have mentioned Jesse Puljujarvi, and he would certainly make the deal worthwhile for the Canucks. The issue, obviously, is whether or not the Oilers would do something like that, and I’m skeptical they’d be willing to part with a top prospect just to get rid of Lucic, even if the shine has come off Puljujarvi in recent years. Ultimately, I think the Oilers would have to give up an asset that has at least a decent chance of playing meaningful games in the NHL for the deal to be worth it. Maybe a second round pick or someone like Tyler Benson would get the deal done. The issue is, sweeteners in these types of deals tend to be pretty insignificant pieces. I’d imagine if the Canucks have interest in Lucic, that has more to do with what they see in him as a player than any additional pieces that might be coming back the other way.

Well, he is a tougher, meaner, more physical presence than Eriksson and the Canucks could use that in their lineup, even if Lucic isn’t exactly the most ideal vessel for those attributes. He’s also only a couple seasons removed from a 50-point season and could maybe regain some of his former glory in his hometown? I’m grasping at straws here but I’m not seeing a lot of positives, either. If they can pry a decent asset out of Edmonton, then it’s justifiable, I suppose, but I’m not jazzed about the possibility of an Eriksson-Lucic swap, either.

Philip Broberg is really the only guy who could realistically be picked at 10 that I would think twice about them selecting. I’ll be a little disappointed if they pass on the forwards that will be available there to draft Victor Soderstrom, but not enough to get worked up about. The third tier of players available in this year’s draft consists of probably 10-12 players and every scout is going to rank them differently.

Jake Gardiner for sure. He’s younger, provides more offense, and has less of a chance of breaking down over the course of his contract. Myers scares me a lot. He’s already declining, and he’s likely to command significant money and term. I think at the end of the day my preference would be for them not to sign either player, but at least Gardiner will probably remain a positive value asset throughout his contract. I can;t say the same for Myers.

I’ll just take a wild guess and say Matthew Boldy, if he’s available. He’s got a high floor, with enough upside to justify taking him in the top ten, and the Canucks could use help on the wing. I don’t think there’s a defenseman that will be available there that’s good enough to justify drafting in that spot, and the Canucks do seem to have a history of looking to the U.S. when it comes to forward prospects. If he’s there when the Canucks pick, I don’t think they’ll pass him up.

Mike Gillis?

This is such a tough question because I really have a lot of respect for Alex Edler and everything he’s done for the Canucks organization, but I think in the end it comes down to what his camp is asking for. I’m not sure they can justify giving him three years, and he has every right to be looking for that. Unfortunately, the front office is now in a pretty sticky situation and could risk losing yet another premium asset for nothing. I think it would be easier to stomach if they had got out in front of the situation by exploring a trade and asking him to waive last off-season. Then, at least, they could have said they did everything in their power to make the best of a bad situation. Instead, there’s a decent chance their overemphasis on short-term wins over long-term success could come back to bite them again.