On Friday’s episode of Canucks Conversation, David Quadrelli and Harman Dayal were joined by Rick Dhaliwal to discuss the latest on Zeev Buium, Ben Hutton as a potential returnee to Vancouver, Jonathan Lekkerimäki’s upcoming season, Thatcher Demko’s recovery, and the Canucks’ long-awaited practice facility.

Dhaliwal began with the latest on Buium and Ohgren, noting that there isn’t much movement on the contract front yet.

“It’s been pretty quiet on both those guys. The Canucks have time with both; they each have one year left on their deal and mid-September is the deadline to sign guys to eight-year deals,” Dhaliwal said. “After mid-September, you’re only allowed to sign seven-year deals in the NHL. Buium is going to be a big number, we know that. Carolina defenceman Alexander Nikishin played one year in the NHL and wants over eight million a year. The Canucks might want to see more games from Buium before committing big money to him. He’s only played 76 games in the NHL but he’ll be a big part of the leadership group going forward.”

Buium has already been showing his commitment to Vancouver by spending time in the city this offseason.

“He’s been in town, was skating at 8 Rinks last week with Sasson. He’s showing a commitment by being here and he loves it here, but as of now there’s nothing to report contract-wise,” Dhaliwal added. “They’ll take care of Buium, he’s the biggest piece in the Hughes trade, but I’ve been told it’s quiet on that front.”

Dhaliwal also revealed there have been conversations between the Canucks and Ben Hutton’s agent about a possible return to Vancouver.

“Agents are calling Vancouver on some of their UFAs, but they’re not biting right now. Ben Hutton is one who is interesting to me. There have been some conversations with Hutton’s agent and the Canucks, not sure where that goes.”

Hutton would also bring some familiarity to an organization that is looking to reshape its culture.

“Ryan Johnson was a development guy when Hutton came into the NHL, and he’s a good veteran in the room who can play up and down the lineup. One of the biggest things this regime is going to do is fix that dressing room. The Canucks’ dressing room has been the worst in the NHL the last few years, and you fix it with guys like Hutton.”

Dhaliwal then provided a positive update on Lekkerimäki, who is coming off season-ending shoulder surgery.

“When it comes to Lekkerimäki, I was told last night he’s on pace to be ready for training camp, and he’s doing great,” he said. “He had that season-ending shoulder surgery in February, so it’s a big year for him. He just turned 22. He’s got five goals in 37 NHL games; he’s got to get going.”

With Vancouver entering a rebuild and adding more high-end prospects, Dhaliwal believes the pressure is increasing on Lekkerimäki to establish himself.

“Every year now, the Canucks are going to be adding a ton of high-end draft picks, and when you have a bunch of those guys coming in, some guys get lost. If he doesn’t become an NHL regular soon, he’s going to get lost in the mix. We know Malhotra, Novotny, and Cootes are coming soon. It’s a big year for Lekkerimäki and he’s got to stay healthy and when he plays his NHL games, he needs to be impactful.”

There was also an encouraging update on Thatcher Demko, although Dhaliwal cautioned against expecting the Canucks goaltender to rush his recovery.

“Thatcher Demko is on the ice skating, working hard. I don’t know if he’s going to be ready for training camp, it’s always a long road after you have hip surgery. There’s also no need to rush him. Do not play that guy until he’s 100% healthy.”

Dhaliwal also discussed how the rising salary cap could change the way NHL organizations operate behind the scenes, particularly for teams that can’t afford to spend as freely on front-office personnel.

“With the salary cap going up and teams spending more and more on player salaries, some teams are going to cut on front office staff,” he said. “Don’t be surprised if some teams start using AI in front offices in the future. A lot of teams can’t go and spend to the cap. Remember, Canadian teams have to spend more with the conversion to USD, so the Leo Carlsson and Macklin Celebrini contracts, not all teams can do those numbers.”

For the Canucks, however, Dhaliwal believes there is one area where the organization cannot afford to cut costs.

“The Abbotsford job is the most critical important hire because of the wave of high draft picks coming to Vancouver in the next five years,” he said. “The one area Vancouver cannot be cheap in is player development. They have to actually overspend there. If they can draft and develop properly, they’re going to get out of this rebuild a whole lot quicker.”

Dhaliwal specifically pointed to Cootes as an early test for Vancouver’s development system.

“You’re going to see the importance of the Abbotsford job when Braeden Cootes hits the ice there. The development team will be put to the test on how to develop a kid like Cootes. High character, does all the right things, everyone raves about him. The onus is always on the player, but the team has to put him in a place to succeed and Abbotsford is where that happens. We’ll see how well they’re able to help adapt this kid to the NHL level. They can’t cheap out on player development.”

Finally, Dhaliwal provided some insight into the Canucks’ plans for a new practice facility, with Britannia remaining the preferred location.

“The Canucks have zeroed in on Britannia for quite some time. Obviously it’s a perfect location being 10 minutes from Rogers, and the release last week said they’re going to explore a building. There’s a framework for who’s paying for what that’s already in place, but the Britannia site is a logistical nightmare.”

He explained that the project comes with significant challenges because of everything surrounding the proposed site.

“Stores, schools, community centres all within the construction radius. The construction challenges with BC Hydro are significant. It can be manageable, but it’s going to take a lot, especially if a second rink were to be planned.”

For now, the plan appears to be utilizing the existing arena and building upwards.

“Due to logistics and cost, the plan is to utilize the existing arena and build upwards, which would take 12-16 months to complete,” Dhaliwal said. “The team and the city have talked about what it would take to add a second rink to the west of the existing building. It’s a very tight fit and would take a ton of coordination.”

Dhaliwal believes the project is important, but cautioned that it won’t happen overnight.

“The Canucks are a hard organization to deal with; they run a tight financial ship, especially right now, but the city has been hard to deal with in this situation,” he said. “The fact this city hasn’t built new rinks for minor hockey is more of an issue than the Canucks not building ice.”

“It’s the start of a rebuild, the Canucks are budgeting as any team would. People need to understand that having a budget and sticking to it in a rebuild doesn’t mean you’re broke or are being cheap. The Canucks know this practice facility has to get done. It should have been done years and years ago, and I thought Britannia could be clean-cut, easy, and get done, but it’s never simple with these guys.”

“I don’t know when the shovel goes in, and even when it does, it’s 12-16 months from there, and if there’s a second sheet, it’ll be longer than that. It’s not happening overnight.”

Watch the full interview below!