Will the Canucks nab a name UFA like Radim Vrbata or Ryan Miller on July 1?
Photo Credit: Jasen Vinlove/USA TODAY Sports
It’s July 1, which means the 2014-15 NHL league year is officially over. Long live the 2015-16 NHL league year!
The official start to the league Calendar will kick off on Wednesday in the same way that every single other campaign has in my life time: with an orgy of misguided spending on players whose best days are behind them. It looked, momentarily, as if the Canucks would be excluded from this annual spree of excess, but Jim Benning, Trevor Linden and company could actually be involved in a serious way now that Kevin Bieksa and his $4.6 million cap hit has been dealt away.
What can we expect from the Canucks today? Read on past the jump.
Key Facts
Current players signed to one-way contracts: 17 (18 with Bo Horvat)
Unsigned RFAs: Sven Baertschi, Frank Corrado, Adam Clendening, Alexandre Grenier
Outgoing UFAs: Yannick Weber, Shawn Matthias, Brad Richardson, Ryan Stanton
Salary cap space: $8.3 million under the upper limit, according to NHLNumbers.com.
Team Needs: Puck-moving defenders, third-string goaltender, centre depth
Preview
Even after clearing Bieksa’s deal off the books, the Canucks don’t have a tonne of wiggle room under the upper limit of the NHL salary cap, particularly once you account for the money they’ll spend in signing the likes of Baertschi, Clendening and Corrado.
On the other hand the Canucks are also close to carrying a full 23-man roster already, with 17 players signed to one-way deals (plus Horvat, who is a shoe-in to make the team). This includes four defenseman, two goaltenders, and 12 forwards. So it would seem that they have the flexibility to invest somewhat heavily in the right piece, if that piece is available. Also based on the raw numbers, it’s self evident that ‘the right piece’ (if it exists) plays on the back end.
All of which matches up with what general manager Jim Benning has said in public recently: that adding speed on defense is the club’s major priority.
“I think if we could add another defenseman with mobility, another defenseman who can get back and transition the puck so we spend less time in our own end,” Benning said to reporters at the tail end of a press conference addressing the Bieksa trade. “That would be the No. 1 thing for me – to add another mobile, puck-moving defenseman.”
We know that the Canucks were a far below average defensive team last season, so prioritizing the blue line is sensible.
The Canucks don’t really have the cap space to do much more than add one major piece (or perhaps two medium sized pieces?), so outside of upgrading along the blue line, it’s likely that Vancouver will just be looking to hit a few singles and shore up the club’s depth in a variety of areas.
Upfront is there an over-the-hill forward seeking to rebuild their value that could be had on a bargain basement deal? Can the Canucks find some centre depth – and ideally a right-handed shooter to take the occasional draw – if they’re restricted to dumpster driving? Might there be an available young forward worth taking a flier on?
Another low-end area of need is in goal. With newly signed goaltender Jacob Markstrom graduating to the NHL-level, the Canucks need to find an American League starter.
They club has reportedly already reached out to former Edmonton Oilers and Dallas Stars netminder Richard Bachman, according to News 1130 Sports.
Nation Network’s Top 10 UFAs
How do you want to see the Canucks spend their limited cap space on the free agent market? And who would you target if you were in the general manager’s seat? Let us know in the comments, and stay tuned to CanucksArmy.com all day for wall-to-wall coverage!
