According to our own Jeff Paterson, the Vancouver Canucks have taken their first step into the professional tryout market, will be signing James Sheppard, formerly of the New York Rangers, to one such contract.

This plan was confirmed by Iain MacIntyre this morning on twitter:

And then confirmed by Ben Kuzma:

Sheppard, 28, last played meaningful hockey for the Rangers en route to their Eastern Conference finals appearance in the 2014-15 season, after being acquired from the San Jose Sharks for a fourth-round selection in the 2016 Entry Draft. Though the Columbus Blue Jackets signed Sheppard to a PTO in advance of last season, he wasn’t able to stick and settled for a one-year deal with the Kloten Flyers of the Suisse men’s league, the NLA.

In 37 games of NLA action last season, Sheppard scored 25 points. In the playoffs, Sheppard chipped in with one goal in four games.

It’s interesting that the Canucks targeted Sheppard, especially with the motley of serviceable, experienced and unsigned options available to them from the NHL talent pool. Names like Alex Tanguay and David Jones are the names that jump out immediately, but there’s plenty of serviceable talent beyond that most off the cuff of lists.

Clearly, the Canucks see something in Sheppard that gives the former bottom-six utility knife preference relative to players with higher upside. It could be Sheppard’s size. He stands at a lengthy 6’1, and while not overly physical or contentious, can hold his own when push comes to shove. He’s also a versatile player that can slot in at any of the three forward positions, though I think he’s at his best at centre.

In his last NHL season, Sheppard was 50% in the faceoff circle and scored 18 points in 71 games. Over the span of his 394 game NHL career, Sheppard’s scored 91 points, all while having a barely negative impact on his team’s ability to control the flow of play.

There’s no telling how far this tryout will go or how serious the Canucks’ interest is in Sheppard. It’s entirely possible they made this move with the eight veteran minimum in mind for the pre-season. Similarly, I wouldn’t be all that surprised if more of these moves follow, especially with the Canucks sending so large a contingency to the World Cup of Hockey. Their veterans will need a rest, to be sure.