logo
CanucksArmy has no direct affiliation to the Vancouver Canucks, Canucks Sports & Entertainment, NHL, or NHLPA
JPat’s Monday Mailbag: Can the Canucks win the draft lottery AND keep Quinn Hughes?
Jeff Paterson's weekly Vancouver Canucks mailbag.
Jeff Paterson
Dec 1, 2025, 13:30 ESTUpdated: Dec 1, 2025, 13:46 EST
Comments
It’s December – a new month and a fresh slate for the Vancouver Canucks.
Oh, jeez, they start the month against the 18-1-6 Colorado Avalanche. Hey, they took the Avs to overtime three weeks ago. Let’s not worry about Tuesday yet, because we’ve got a new Monday Mailbag to get to. You had lots of questions this week, and we hope we have a few answers. So let’s jump right in.
Well, we here at CanucksArmy are certainly thankful the team has such a loyal and passionate fan base. As for the Canucks themselves, there is always reason to be thankful for Quinn Hughes and the things he does on the ice. Be thankful that Kiefer Sherwood is still a Canuck (for now). Be thankful that Tom Willander looks to be tracking to be exactly what the team hoped he’d be. Be thankful that Braeden Cootes and Aleksei Medvedev are both part of the system. Be thankful Rogers Arena has comfortable new seats, unless you’re stuck in the section of old ones that haven’t been upgraded yet.
With the team in 30th position in the overall standings a third of the way through the schedule, it certainly feels like we’ve arrived at that point. Never say never, but the Canucks would need to go something like 33-17-6 over their remaining 56 games to make the playoffs. In other words, they need to play at a 105-point pace over a full season, the rest of the way, just to get to 95 points. Considering they haven’t won consecutive games since October 17th and 19th, I’d need to see it to believe it. 
I can’t really draw a through line between acquiring Evander Kane and not believing in those others. The Canucks liked the idea of a rugged, goal scorer who would bring some snarl to their lineup. They did not really have that type of player on the roster after peddling JT Miller. At the time, they didn’t know that Nils Höglander would be hurt in the preseason. Lekkerimäki played his way onto the team with a strong second week of exhibition action and scored on opening night. His season was off to a strong start when he got injured in Washington. I think there was belief in both of those players. Management made a high-risk bet on Filip Chytil staying healthy, and that, clearly, has not panned out. So, allowing Pius Suter to walk in free agency has proven to be a costly decision. And with just five goals and a limited physical impact, the Evander Kane they acquired hasn’t fully lived up to even modest expectations for him. Could Kane’s cap hit have been better allocated? Absolutely. But I don’t think the reason they acquired Kane was that they didn’t have faith in either Höglander or Lekkerimäki.
A trade ahead of this year’s deadline would give the acquiring team two playoff runs with a true game-changer and one of the best players in the sport. As such, the Canucks should be able to demand a grand slam package of players, prospects and picks. A trade ahead of next year’s deal would be a rental deal in the traditional sense of the word, but the player being rented would be one of the top five to 10 skaters in the sport. Still, that would limit the return, especially if the acquiring team felt it had no chance to re-sign Hughes as a pending unrestricted free agent with his eyes elsewhere. The biggest issue with dealing star players is that the team doing the selling rarely wins those trades. It’s hard to find an equal or greater value than a franchise player has provided. So the Hughes drama will continue, and the speculation around him will continue to swirl. But every day that goes by is another day closer to Quinn Hughes having to make a decision and letting the Canucks know his plans for the future.

If Hughes is traded, who is the next captain?

— 🇨🇦 Trent Leith 🏳️‍🌈 (@trentleith.bsky.social) 2025-11-30T07:37:36.990Z

We had a couple of versions of this question this week. I chose Trent’s because he’s a nice guy, and he was a participant in The Botchford Project, which allows me to mention here that the deadline for entries is Wednesday at noon. So don’t miss out on your chance.
As for the next captain of the Canucks, what if that player isn’t even in the organization yet? How do you answer that question? Honestly, a guy like Filip Hronek demonstrates a ton of leadership qualities; he plays hard, his teammates love him, and, by all accounts, has a voice that holds weight in that locker room. But the public-facing duties that come with being a captain in a Canadian market very well may be a deal-breaker for Hronek. Braeden Cootes is the captain of his junior team in Seattle and displays the traits of a player who may someday wear a C in the NHL. But he’s far too young to be considered on a list of ‘next’ captain of the Canucks. Unless the team built in a buffer and went without a captain for a while. If they peddle Hughes this season, I’d advise going without anyone wearing the C for a while. Maybe through next season, too. If Conor Garland is still here, maybe he fits the bill as a heart-and-soul guy who shows up, competes, and plays the right way. Yeah, let’s go with Garland.

Is there a beautifully narrow space where the Canucks could sell Sherwood and Kane, bottom out, win the draft lottery, draft McKenna and still keep Quinn Hughes? Or is that too much hope?

— Strongbelly (@strongbelly.bsky.social) 2025-11-30T18:21:56.146Z

This would require some of the very best stickhandling we’ve seen from the Canucks all season. But I’m going to say, sure, there is always a possibility. Selling Sherwood could be done easily. Selling Kane, I’m not as convinced. They’re in 30th at the moment, so they can see the bottom from their current perch. Winning the draft lottery will be tough because, well, because they’re the Canucks and they never win the draft lottery. But, hey, maybe Gavin McKenna falls in the draft. And through it all, perhaps Quinn Hughes decides that Vancouver is the place he wants to stay and play. And maybe the Canucks give him something in the neighbourhood of $140M (8 x $17.5M) to help him feel that way. It’s a lot of hope, certainly. Too much hope? Who’s to say? Stranger things have happened, I think. 
I certainly hope not. Playoffs are fun. We were all reminded of that for those four weeks in the spring of 2024. Here’s a dirty little secret: other teams do that annually. But if the Canucks don’t make the playoffs for a second straight season and Quinn Hughes decides his future is elsewhere, then the question becomes how quickly can the rebuild take hold? I’d like to think any trade package involving Hughes would return a young player or two that could step in and help right away. And from there, you’d hopefully have the makings of a new core of players for this team. Establishing a new franchise record for missed playoff seasons is not something I want to consider at this moment. I want this market to experience playoff hockey again soon. And then again after that. And after that, too. So I will remain optimistic that the playoff drought will not reach new heights. I don’t know how they’ll get there. But I’m going to believe that they’ll find a way over the next couple of seasons.

PRESENTED BY WHISTLER GOLF CLUB

This article is a presentation of the Arnold Palmer designed Whistler Golf Club.  Spring preparations are underway with opening day on May 9th.  Whistler Golf Club is now accepting online bookings for the entire 2025 season, so no need to wait to get those times locked in.  If you have a group of 12 or more, get those times on hold now as prime times are filling up fast.  For more information, head to https://www.whistlergolf.com/

Editorials

Breaking News