Two weeks ahead of this year’s trade deadline, the Vancouver Canucks rumour mill is showing no signs of slowing down.
After some massive moves already taking place with the organization this month, another key Canuck has landed on Friday’s edition of DailyFaceoff’s trade targets board, with alternate captain Brock Boeser landing at number 15.
Compiled by insider Frank Seravalli, the list “always seeks to blend a player’s prominence with his likelihood of a trade.” Joining Boeser on the top 30 list is Vancouver defenceman Carson Soucy at #10, and Elias Pettersson, a recurring character in the ranking who has now climbed to #6.
With Boeser’s three-year contract set to expire this summer, many have begun to speculate about where his future lies with the Canucks as he has yet to sign an extension. Seravalli offers some perspective on the situation the two parties find themselves in:
“It’s been a slow-moving game of ‘chicken’ between the Canucks and Boeser’s camp, both completely comfortable playing this out. They essentially dared him to go out and replicate his 40-goal season. He’s on track for 28 with seven games missed due to injury, which is actually above his career average. Now with the increasing cap on his side, he’s a younger UFA, and the Canucks are really going to need scoring support if they have designs on competing again anytime soon. Plus they currently have the cap room to re-sign him.”
The American winger has 18 goals and 35 points in 48 games played so far this season. He brings consistent top six production that many teams may be looking for in exchange for some picks or assets for before the deadline, but it will take a good offer to ship the fan favourite player out of the city.
Soucy meanwhile comes in at tenth on the list, as he suffers through a difficult year with only eight points in 54 games, sitting at -15. The 30-year-old has one season remaining on his contract worth $3 million AAV.
Seravalli says the Canucks have been eager to move him this month, but have had issues due to his full no-trade clause. Now, things are changing, he writes:
“Uninterested in leaving posthaste, Soucy decided that he wanted to take a couple weeks to try and get his game in order in Vancouver and see if he could rebound from what he admitted has been a tough year. Then the 4 Nations break hit. Soucy can see the writing on the wall and a healthy scratch on the horizon, and he wants to play. He’s a super attractive trade chip if the Canucks retain salary.”
Pettersson also continues to be a feature of the trade targets ranking, now climbing to sixth from #30 on the edition published earlier this month. The Canucks have expected him to improve his play since Miller was shipped off, but he has continued his slow production, including an invisible appearance in the 4 Nations Face-Off with Team Sweden where he registered zero points. With seven years left on a $11.6 million AAV contract, there are question marks about what he could return at that price and if the Canucks risk selling too low, but you can be certain they are looking into it nonentheless.
Get ready, hockey fans! The Daily Faceoff Deadline is happening on March 7th from 11 AM to 4 PM Eastern, and you won’t want to miss it. We’ll be LIVE, breaking down every trade and big move as it happens, with instant reactions and expert analysis from the Daily Faceoff crew. Plus, we’ve got special guests lined up throughout the show, offering exclusive insights from some of the biggest names in the game. From blockbuster trades to surprise moves, we’re covering it all. Tune in to the Daily Faceoff YouTube channel and follow Daily Faceoff socials on March 7th to catch all the action!
