WWYDW: Logjam

The Canucks added three new forwards in free agency on a well-publicized and controversial July 1. What once looked to be a rookie-laden Canucks lineup is now filled with veteran talent. So, we’ll keep it simple this week. Which rookies do you think should make the team next season? Which should start the season in Utica?

Last week I asked: What free agents would you like to see the Canucks sign?

A cheap decent right D like Greg Pateryn or Dylan DeMelo.

That’s it.

If he would sign a 1 year deal, I would bring back Dan Hamhuis. His metrics are still excellent and he’d probably like to come back. In retrospect, we should never have let him go. The idea was to play the kids and get younger but instead we signed Del Zotto and Weircioch.

I would sign a short-term rental player at center for a 2-3 year deal. The Canucks are likely to be near the bottom of the standings again this year, and there are likely to be several good centers available to them. Even if they don’t hit the jackpot and land Jack Hughes, there are players like Dylan Cozens and Raphael Lavoie. The important thing is that the team’s focus needs to be building for the long term, not on short term fixes.

dont sign anyone longer than 1 year. finally start rebuilding this yaer, which means flip everyone not tied down at the deadline.

Sign a couple of inexpensive depth centres and depth defencemen to 1-2 year deals so they can plug holes and be traded at the deadline if necessary. With the Sedins gone, help on defence a year or two away, this team is going to be bottom-5. Embrace it, go after the other Hughes, prepare for another brotherly duo to carry the Canucks to the Stanley Cup Finals in a few years’ time.

I think the best option is to play it out and hope we get decent years from existing players and sell at the TDL for more picks.

If we do try and insulate our young players, I would like to see them aim for Riley Nash or Jay Beagle. If its longer then two years then I would be hesitant…

Create competition but do not keep trying to sell us the “foundational player” spiel in free agency. Those players are drafted or traded for.

I posted in other article, but I would PTO a bunch of guys. Matthias, Vey, Buoma, Brodziak. I would not commit any huge dollars or terms to Bozak/Nash/Ryan – we already have Gagner and Granlund. Wait it out because there are more free agent centers next year (Anders Lee, Henrique, Brassard. Marcus Johansson, etc).

As uneventful as it would be, I would re-sign Dowd and sign Flipulla for C depth. Sign Reaves to a 2 year $4.5 mil contract. PTO Roussell, Matthias, and Bouma. Re-sign Wiercoch and another AHL d-man with NHL experience when spring D injuries happen. This lets guys like Goldy, JV, and Leipsic to have an opportunity to have an impression. Give Gaudette some competition to beat Matthias for a 4th line, or develop in AHL. Give an opportunity to Sautner, Brisebois, and Chatfield to be viable d injury replacements so they start getting experience, and not block Hughes and/or OJ if they prove themselves in camp.

Re-sign the RFAs

Sign Beagle for 2×1.5M, which frees you up to trade Sutter at the deadline if not sooner.

Honestly, there isn’t much to do with this team right now but wait. If there’s been interest in Gudbranson then sign Hamhuis for a year or two and flip Guddy. Sign Burrows to a one-day contract so he can retire as a Canuck – him being traded to the Sens for Dahlen, re-signing, then getting bought out at 100% cap hit is an all-time jerk puck move.

I’d look to add someone like Jay Beagle or Mark Letestu at 1.5-2x market rate on a one-year contract. Teams are always looking to add defensively reliable depth at the trade deadline, especially at center. If we can entice one (or both!) to give up term, they can be a culture-carrier/reliable veteran/teach the kids how to be pros/whatever cliche you want to insert here and we can harvest assets for just the cost of cap space. If Gaudette shows he can handle a bigger role it might even free us up to pull the trigger on a Sutter trade.

I would not sign anyone. In the past, the Canucks have had question marks about their line-up with no prospects that could legitimately be considered as options. They still have some holes at centre, but have some possibility that the prospects could fill the holes. In a perfect situation, our centres would be Horvat, Pettersson, Sutter and Gaudette. Personally, I don’t know if Pettersson will be ready, but give him a shot. Gagner, Granlund and Gaunce are already on the roster and could play centre if needed. The Canucks are not going to be a good team if the prospects aren’t ready, so why sign some free agent that will not really make a difference. The Canucks probably won’t be very good even if the prospects are ready, but I don’t want some free agent plug to block the prospects who would be gaining experience.

Sign some PTO’s and there will always be players available on the waiver wire at the end of camp. The Canucks will not be good unless the prospects are ready to contribute so why fill up the roster with low end fringe players as we already have a bunch of those signed. If the kids aren’t ready, players will be available from other teams when training camp closes.