For a moment, this was going to be the third edition of our series “Are TEAM the trade solution to the Canucks’ blueline problems?” So far, we’ve already covered the Vegas Golden Knights and the New York Rangers, and this piece started out as “Are the Columbus Blue Jackets the trade solution to the Canucks’ blueline problems?” And it could still be considered that, if you’re a particular fan of continuity.

But the longer we looked at the Blue Jackets, the more only one trade target made sense, and that’s young RHD David Jiricek.

It’s not hard to figure out why the rest of the Columbus blueline isn’t of much interest to the Canucks right now. Zach Werenski is terrific, but would definitely break the budget at a $9.58 million cap hit, not to mention the cost of acquisition. The 30-year-old Damon Severson is also not a fit for budgetary reasons.

None of Dante Fabbro, Jordan Harris, or Jack Johnson are much in the way of difference-makers. Ivan Provorov makes some sense as an outright rental but would probably not be someone the Canucks would consider an option beyond this year, so that’s more of a last-resort thing.

And as tempting as it might be to flip Jonathan Lekkerimäki and a second-round pick for Erik Gudbranson, we’ll refrain from suggesting that for now.

Which leaves Jiricek as the obvious showpiece in the set.

Still 20 years old until November 28, Jiricek is just over two years removed from being drafted at sixth overall in the 2022 draft. And he still carries plenty of the profile that saw him selected that high, including a still-growing 6’3”, 209 pound frame.

Canucks fans who were around for that draft will probably remember Jiricek’s name being thrown around at the time as a near-ideal pick for the franchise, albeit one that would be a bit out of reach from their position of 15^th overall. Indeed, the pre-draft hype for this player was incredibly high, and it’s not hard to see why.

Those attributes of size, skating ability, and right-handedness were always going to make Jiricek an intriguing prospect. But it was what he was able to do with those qualities, at least prior to being drafted, that made him really exciting. Jiricek’s two-way awareness, on-ice vision, defensive reach and coverage, and his little bit of a mean-streak resulted in some rather staggering comparables being thrown around. Jiricek was compared to Alex Pietrangelo and Charlie McAvoy. Some even went as far as to label him the “Czech Chris Pronger,” and while that was probably always going to sound a little ridiculous in retrospect, it’s a good indication of just how high scouts were on this guy.

So what happened to make Jiricek a tradeable asset in just two years?

In short: slow development, mismanagement, and a little bit of good ol’ fashioned begrudging.

Jiricek looked ready to crack the Blue Jackets out of training camp right after being drafted, which boded well for his NHL future. But seeking not to rush him too much, Columbus wound up dressing Jiricek for only four games in that first 2022/23 season, with him spending the rest of the year down in Cleveland of the AHL. It wound up being a pretty successful first season on North American ice for Jiricek with 38 points in 55 minor league games.

His sophomore campaign started out rough, however. First, there was the whole Mike Babcock debacle that ultimately led to his being fired before coaching a single Blue Jackets game. Amid all that turmoil, Jiricek was seemingly told he’d achieved a permanent spot on the Columbus blueline, and given the proverbial ‘find yourself an apartment’ speech. But that spot in the lineup would prove tenuous with the Blue Jackets having added a number of veteran defenders that previous offseason.

Throughout 2023/24, Jiricek struggled to get into the lineup, suiting up for just 43 NHL games total with an average ice-time of 14:36 and very little special teams time. Two years in a row of thinking he’d be receiving more opportunity to play, only to not, definitely wore on Jiricek, and he made that frustration publicly known in January of 2024.

Speaking with The Athletic, Jiricek stated that “I played good hockey in the NHL. I’m an NHL player right now. That’s my opinion, that I should be in the NHL right now. I see guys from the same draft, like Simon Nemec and Korchinski… they get a chance on the power play. They play a ton of minutes in the NHL. Those are different teams, so different situations, but I can compare with them. I just want a chance to play like that.”

It wasn’t an outright trade demand, at least not quite yet. But it was a far heavier critique than NHL teams are typically used to hearing from 20-year-olds. At the time, Jiricek had been riding the pine for about three straight weeks. There was reportedly some concern about his willingness to report to Cleveland again, but after these comments, he was indeed sent down and wound up playing 29 games for the Monsters before an April 2024 recall back to Columbus.

Which brings us to the present day. Once again, the Blue Jackets potentially blocked Jiricek’s progress through picking up a couple of NHL-level defenders, this time in the forms of Harris and Johnson, though both were left-handers.

Then, not too long into the 2024/25 campaign, the Blue Jackets picked up 26-year-old RHD Fabbro off waivers from the Nashville Predators. And, with Severson and Gudbranson already ahead of Jiricek on the current depth chart, that once again pushed him down and out of the lineup.

The result has been this: we’re two months into the season, and Jiricek has played just six games with an average ice-time of just 11:12. Just recently, the Jackets made the decision to once again demote Jiricek to Cleveland so that he could get in some more game action. And while Jiricek has refrained from making any more public comments as of yet, one has to imagine that his frustration level has only increased.

All of which leads to recent speculation by main Columbus beat writer Aaron Portzline to not “be surprised if David Jiricek is traded.”

This could be a cash-out situation for a Blue Jackets team that now has to worry that there’s too much water under the bridge for this player to succeed in Columbus. There may also be some impetus to deal him before he can make an outright demand for it, which would naturally decrease his value.

The fit for the Canucks here is pretty obvious. Frustrations with Columbus – not exactly a beacon of player development – aside, Jiricek is still mostly the same player at 20 who drew so much hype at 18. The only difference now is pro experience, and some good runs of AHL play at that.

Sure, he’s struggled a bit at the NHL level. But most defenders that are Jiricek’s age are still in junior or back overseas. That he was thrust into NHL employment without ever being given a true NHL opportunity is more mismanagement than anything.

There’s been a bit of talk lately about the awkward timing of Vancouver’s blueline needs, in which they have a couple of prospects arriving soon that will make a difference, like Tom Willander, but perhaps not soon enough to make the most of their competitive window. Jiricek would arrive a full year older than Willander and already with ample North American pro experience under his belt.
One can easily imagine Jiricek sliding onto that right side with Filip Hronek and Tyler Myers right now, and buying more time for Willander to develop and transition onto the team. By the 2026/27 season, Myers is on his final year and the Canucks are ready to hand the keys off to the kids.

It certainly sounds ideal. A right-handed D big on potential, but who hasn’t had the NHL success yet to break the budget? A skating puck-mover who wouldn’t require the Canucks compromising on their general desire for big, mean defenders? In many ways, Jiricek is exactly what the Canucks are looking for.

Which brings us, unfortunately, to the price-tag.

For all the reasons listed above, if and when Jiricek hits the block, there won’t be many teams not inquiring. As such, the bidding could get a little ridiculous.

Here, one has to hope that the Blue Jackets really, really like a Nils Höglander. The Canucks would probably make that swap any day, and the Jackets are perpetually in need of scoring help.

But Jiricek’s age and lofty potential would probably prevent it from being a one-for-one, and the chances of another team offering a better, younger forward prospect are high.

Could the Canucks attach their first round pick to Höglander to close the gap? Sure, but it’s not going to be a high pick, and even that might not get the job done.

Nor might throwing even more additional picks on top of that. Columbus ultimately already has a lot of picks and prospects on hand. They’d be more interested in young players about to burst onto the scene than those several years away. Unfortunately, the Canucks’ own prospects are split into those too important to part with – the Willanders, the Lekkerimäkis, the Rätys – and those who probably don’t move the needle for Columbus.

Maybe the Canucks could offer something akin to Höglander, a first, and a Sawyer Mynio-type prospect. But are we now into the territory of that being too risky of a payment for a player that is still stuck on one goal and 11 career points?

And are we sure that another, more desperate team wouldn’t outbid that offer all the same? Remember, the Canucks already have Hronek and Willander in the fold, which puts them ahead of a lot of other NHL teams in the RHD game.

Is Jiricek a good option for the Canucks? No. He’s a great one. Darn near ideal if he were able to fulfill even a portion of that potential. But a fit that good isn’t going to come without an enormous cost, so if the Canucks do make a big bet on Jiricek, they had better be pretty certain it’s a bet they are going to win.