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JPat’s Monday Mailbag: When healthy, is Rossi or Chytil the Canucks’ second line centre?
Jeff Paterson's weekly Vancouver Canucks mailbag.
Jeff Paterson
Jan 26, 2026, 14:00 ESTUpdated: Jan 26, 2026, 13:35 EST
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I think we need to call Teddy Blueger the mailman. Three games back after missing three months, the veteran centre has delivered.
Blueger has scored in back-to-back games. He has three goals now in the five games he’s managed to appear in this season. If a few of his teammates scored at anything close to that rate, the Canucks likely wouldn’t be sitting with a 17-30-5 record. We’ll do our best Teddy Blueger impression and try to deliver the goods with this week’s Monday mailbag. As usual, you had plenty of questions, and we’ll do what we can to answer some of them. Let’s get going.
Without question, it has to be Marco Rossi. Rossi already has a 60-point season on his resume and has scored 24 and 21 goals in separate seasons before his 25th birthday. Chytil, on the other hand, has a career-best 22 goals and 45 points in the 2022-23 season. And that stands alone as his only season with more than 23 points. On skill and talent, Rossi profiles as the more impactful player than Chytil. And obviously, there are the constant health questions that hang over Chytil. While Rossi hasn’t had the chance to prove himself in Canucks colours, having played just eight games since the mega-trade from Minnesota, he still slots in as a legitimate second line centre. Is there more to his game? It’s hard to tell at this point, but the Canucks are certainly hoping so. Rossi won’t turn 25 until September and is two full years younger than Chytil. So I think by almost every measure – save for straightaway speed – he slots in ahead of Chytil.
I sure hope so. But I need to see it to believe it. For years, fans and media screamed at the previous regime to weaponize cap space. All those bad seasons when the Canucks had plenty of cap space to take on bad contracts to their benefit, or could have acted as a third-party broker to gain a draft pick, and never once did they act like an organization serious about using the collective bargaining agreement to their advantage. Given where the Canucks are in their competitive arc, this management group should be actively looking to take on the final year or two of a few bloated contracts in exchange for draft capital. Ahead of this year’s deadline, it makes perfect sense for the Canucks to help playoff-bound teams shed some salary to gain flexibility, but it has to come at a cost. What would Edmonton be willing to attach to get underperforming Andrew Mangiapane off the books so that they could explore other options? He has one year beyond this one at a manageable $3.6M left on his contract. I’d like to see the Canucks explore bringing in a couple of veterans with limited term remaining who won’t handcuff them for years to come. Get teams to pay the Canucks to take on those deals, and maybe there’s a chance the Canucks could, in turn, peddle those players at next year’s deadline to gain further assets.
I think Thatcher Demko is intent on continuing his NHL career. Whether his body is up to the challenge remains the question. But I highly doubt retirement has crossed his mind. He just turned 30 last month, and he has a new three-year contract extension that hasn’t even kicked in yet. So, my sense, without having had the chance to talk to him since his latest injury, is that he’s mapping out a strategy to get fully healthy to give it another shot next season. I do think that, at his age, given the position he plays and the lengthy list of injuries he has endured, his future is full of red flags. But I don’t think Demko would be looking all over the planet for doctors that can help him if he didn’t still believe he had some good years left. His track record of staying healthy is spotty at best, and with that, I’m sure many fans have lost faith that he’ll ever be able to be a reliable number one option ever again. At some point, Demko may have no choice but to finish his career on LTIR. But I don’t think we’re at that point now.
Filip Hronek has easily been the most consistent Vancouver Canuck this season. While Quinn Hughes was still here, Hronek was playing well. Since the trade, Hronek has elevated his game. 
In the first 31 games while Hughes was still in Canuck colours, Hronek averaged 24:22 of ice time, scored twice, had 16 points and registered 43 shots on goal. Since the deal, Hronek’s production rate has gone up with two goals and 14 points in 21 games. Over that span, he’s averaged 24:49 of ice time, but has not shot the puck as much as he did earlier in the season, putting 28 shots on net.
As far as the underlying numbers go, in the first 31 games, Hronek carried an individual Corsi of 51.3% and the Canucks were outshot by one in his 5-on-5 minutes. Despite an xGF% of 49.6, the team outscored opponents 26-18.
In the past 21 games since the deal, Hronek’s individual CF% has jumped to 53.2%; however, the team has been outshot by four. The club is carrying an xGF% of 55.1% with Hronek on the ice and has outscored opponents 15-13. 
It’s impossible to suggest that Hronek or the Canucks are better off without Quinn Hughes, but Hronek has certainly demonstrated an ability to hold his own without his longtime defensive partner. There is no question that Hronek has been the club’s MVP this season. And that started while Hughes was still here and has certainly continued after he was shipped to Minnesota. 

If you could sign one veteran from around the league to help guide the Canucks through the next three years who would you go after?

— Rob Duckworth (@robduckworth.bsky.social) 2026-01-24T20:24:22.442Z

Are we talking fantasy world stuff, like Connor McDavid or Nathan MacKinnon? Does Connor Bedard qualify as a veteran yet? Or are we digging into pending unrestricted free agents that the Canucks could actually go out and sign on July 1st? How about Kiefer Sherwood? Too soon? Okay, then what about Jordan Eberle, Boone Jenner or Reilly Smith? I suppose the object of this exercise is to find a quality veteran to shepherd the youth on the Canucks roster the way Nick Foligno has in Chicago. Eberle and  Jenner are the captains of their respective teams, while Smith has a championship pedigree from his first stint in Vegas. All are set to hit the open market this summer. Usually, veterans at that stage of their careers are looking for one last shot at glory, so those players may have no interest in what the Canucks are selling. But money talks, and perhaps an overpay on a shorter-term contract could get their attention to play a key role in guiding the rebuild in the right direction.

Impressed with Buium’s play last night. As he grows, what do you think his ceiling is in terms of comps?

— CrankyCanucksFan 🇨🇦🏒 (@crankycanucksfan.bsky.social) 2026-01-24T19:57:01.303Z

This question was posed in the wake of Zeev Buium’s nifty individual effort in Friday’s 5-4 loss to New Jersey. It was not asked after a couple of loud defensive miscues that led directly to Pittsburgh goals in Sunday’s 3-2 loss to the Penguins. Such is life for a talented 20-year-old defenceman finding his way in the NHL. While there is a lot to like about the way Buium plays the game, there is also much to learn about defending at this level. With five goals and 20 points in 51 games this season, the San Diego native is on pace for 32 points in his first full NHL season. That’s an impressive starting point. At this stage, Buium doesn’t project as a big goal scorer from the blueline, although that could change. He looks like a puck mover who will collect points with his vision and his playmaking on the power play. In that regard, he strikes me as a Thomas Chabot type.
The Ottawa blueliner has been a consistent 40-45-point producer, with a 55-point season on his resume. At the high end, Buium might develop into a Cam Fowler who has played more than 1,000 games and has been a 35-40 point producer seven times throughout his career. The Canucks would be thrilled if he could develop into a Morgan Rielly type. Or perhaps a Charlie McAvoy clone. Initially, my thought went to Bowen Byram as a comparable. However, the hope has to be that Buium can be more productive than Byram, who has topped 30 points in a season only once in his career. Of course, injuries have limited Byram throughout his time in the NHL.

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