As we write these words, the Vancouver Canucks have just closed out a 5-2 loss to…the Anaheim Ducks.

Now, we won’t go calling them the ‘lowly’ Anaheim Ducks. Not anymore. For one, they just beat the Canucks handily. For two, the Ducks are now just six points back of the Canucks in the Pacific Division, and with a game in hand. Now 7-2-1 in their last ten, the Ducks are making a push and proving to be a better team than anyone gave them credit for.

But we can’t exactly call them the ‘Mighty’ Ducks, either (and not just for legal reasons.) The playoffs are still all-but-certainly out of reach for Anaheim, realistically-speaking, and although they are a team on the upswing, they’re not a team the Canucks should be losing to. Not at this crucial point in the 2024/25 season. Not with so much on the line.

After the loss, the Canucks technically held on to a playoff spot…but only technically. The Calgary Flames are a point behind them for the last wildcard position in the West, but hold a game in hand and a higher point-percentage.

The Canucks now move to a 5-4-1 record in their last ten. The month of February saw them score just 16 total goals in eight games, a truly abysmal result.

To put it to a phrase, it’s simply not good enough. And ‘not good enough’ has been the theme of this team throughout the majority of the season, and in so many ways.

Now, we’re not here to declare that the Canucks’ hopes of the postseason are lost. They do still technically hold a playoff position, and will likely remain in a dogfight with the Calgary Flames (and maybe the oncoming Utah Hockey Club) for that last spot right down to the wire.

But we are here to declare that the Canucks are, quite decidedly, not performing well enough in 2024/25 to be worth investing any more resources into.

Point-blank, the Canucks should no longer consider themselves ‘buyers’ at the 2025 Trade Deadline.

Does this mean they cannot add any players to the roster? Of course not. If the Canucks can swing a trade between now and Friday, March 7, that improves their club in both the present day and in future seasons, they’ll obviously take a look at that. But no longer should they be showing any interest in any trades that bring back an asset whose primary value is adding to their 2024/25 chances. Absolutely no rentals. No Elias Lindholm and Nikita Zadorov this year.

In the words of Logen Ninefingers, you’ve got to be realistic. This year is not their year.

But the Canucks’ own lacklustre performance is not the only reason they should stay well out of the buying game at the 2025 Trade Deadline. It’s also shaping up to be a real seller’s market – perhaps the most clear-cut we’ve seen in some time.

The reason? Something the NHL has been trying to achieve for the entire modern era: parity.

The Eastern Conference standings are an absolute warzone right now.

The top three spots in the Atlantic are currently held by Florida (75 points), Toronto (74), and Tampa Bay (72). The top three spots in the Metropolitan are currently held by Washington (84), Carolina (72), and New Jersey (70). Then the two Eastern wildcard spots are currently held by Detroit (66) and Columbus (66).

With the exception of Washington being way out ahead of everyone, that’s a tight field. And the closeness doesn’t stop there. Below the current playoff cut-off line, we have the New York Rangers (62 points, game in hand), Ottawa (62, game in hand), Boston (62), Montreal (61), Philadelphia, (60), and NYI (59, game in hand) all within shouting distance.

The only two teams that are truly out of it would appear to be the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Buffalo Sabres.

Not much will change in the week between now and the Trade Deadline. That means that the Eastern Conference will be almost bereft of teams selling off assets. Of the teams we’ve listed already, we could see the Flyers and Islanders deciding to peel off from their chases and trade away a few veteran assets. At the same time, the lowlier Penguins are somewhat dedicated to their veterans, and the Sabres are trying their best to approximate an upswing.

Which means there might not be all that much selling coming from the East at all this deadline. Which further underlines a true seller’s market. Those who are selling will have a real abundance of buyers to choose from with this many teams holding hopes for the postseason.

And that’s just the East. Which is, of course, the conference the Canucks would typically prefer to buy from, when they’ve got the choice. This year, were they to go shopping, they’d have to focus all their efforts on their own Western Conference.

But back in the West, there still aren’t that many concrete sellers to be found. The Central Division has the Winnipeg Jets way out on top (87 points), followed by the Dallas Stars (76), and the Minnesota Wild (72). The Pacific is helmed by the Golden Knights (76), the Edmonton Oilers (72), and the Los Angeles Kings (70). The wildcard spots are held by the Colorado Avalanche (70), and the aforementioned Vancouver Canucks (75).

Now, that’s a much less tight race than is happening in the East. But it still doesn’t leave a lot of room for sellers, not with Calgary (64, game in hand), Utah (63), and St. Louis (62) still feasibly in it at this point. Heck, maybe we should add Anaheim (59, game in hand, coming on strong) to that list.

Below them, the Seattle Kraken, Nashville Predators, Chicago Blackhawks, and San Jose Sharks are all clearly out of it, and each of those teams can be expected to play the role of seller at the 2025 Trade Deadline. We’ve also heard tell that, despite being just three points back, the Blues are also preparing to sell off some pieces, like perhaps Brayden Schenn.

In any case, we’re looking at about four-to-six selling teams in the West, and maybe two-to-three in the East.

That’s a rough distribution of about eight sellers to 24 potential buyers, or a 1-to-3 ratio. A seller’s market, if their ever was one, meaning that by the law of supply and demand, those few teams selling will be able to affect some serious bidding wars between their litany of buyers.

Which is why, as we return to our original premise, we must re-emphasize that this is not the Canucks’ year, and it is certainly not their year to be buying. It’s a market that is best steered clear of, given the Canucks’ current proclivity for lackluster performance.

Or, we should clarify, it’s a market that is best steered clear of…on the buyer’s side of things.

One can’t help but look at the standings and think that any team who decided to sell at this year’s deadline – even though they may be in the running for a playoff position – might make out like bandits. There will be a shortage of rental assets available, and absolutely no shortage of buyers. Going into seller mode could be one way of turning a tight market into a tidy profit, and the Canucks do have a small bounty of pending UFAs in Brock Boeser, Pius Suter, and Derek Forbort.

We’re pretty sure about the Canucks not being buyers at the 2025 Trade Deadline. Well, we’re not sure about GM Patrik Allvin and Co.’s actual intentions, but we’re pretty set on the ‘should not’ side of things. Any future assets they might otherwise spend are best spent on, well, the future. We don’t know if we’d go so far as to say that the Canucks should fully embrace the role of the ‘seller’ quite yet, so as to add even more assets for said future…but the table is certainly set to be tempting.

Get ready, hockey fans! The Daily Faceoff Deadline is happening on March 7th from 11 AM to 4 PM Eastern, and you won’t want to miss it. We’ll be LIVE, breaking down every trade and big move as it happens, with instant reactions and expert analysis from the Daily Faceoff crew. Plus, we’ve got special guests lined up throughout the show, offering exclusive insights from some of the biggest names in the game. From blockbuster trades to surprise moves, we’re covering it all. Tune in to the Daily Faceoff YouTube channel and follow Daily Faceoff socials on March 7th to catch all the action!