Vancouver Canucks General Manager Patrik Allvin announced on Tuesday morning that the club has reached an agreement on a two-year contract extension at a $2.5 million average annual value.
The Canucks acquired O’Connor on January 31st from the Pittsburgh Penguins alongside defenceman Marcus Pettersson – who they have since extended – in exchange for forward Danton Heinen, defenceman Vincent Desharnais, prospect Melvin Fernström and a 2025 top-13 protected first-round pick, recently acquired by the New York Rangers.
The 26-year-old has played just a handful of games for the Canucks, but has scored two goals with 10 shots on goal, six penalty minutes, with a plus-one rating, averaging 13:57 minutes of ice time through four games. Before the trade, O’Connor played 53 games with the Pittsburgh Penguins, scoring six goals and 10 assists for 16 points with a minus-14 rating.
O’Connor started his Canucks tenure playing on the team’s third line, developing a strong hitting line of him and Kiefer Sherwood with Pius Suter as their centreman. He has since graduated up to the second line, playing with fellow newcomer Filip Chytil and Canuck veteran Brock Boeser.
The 6’4″ winger had two goals that iced the game. His first one was an empty net goal to solidify a 3-0 victory over the Colorado Avalanche:
The following game, O’Connor was hooked on a breakaway and was awarded a penalty shot in overtime. He pulled off a similar move to a former Canuck, JT Miller, taking the shot out wide left and ripping it far right side:
Here’s what Allvin had to say regarding the signing:
“Drew has really made a good first impression since joining our team from Pittsburgh at the beginning of the month,” said Allvin. “We like his size, speed and ability to get in on the forecheck and hound pucks. Our staff also feel confident that they can help Drew take his game to another level and we are excited to see what the future holds for him with the Vancouver Canucks.”
In very short order, O’Connor has made an impression in Vancouver, one big enough to earn him a two-year extension worth $5 million.