As the Vancouver Canucks continue their search for a centre, the club has reportedly made their pending unrestricted free agent veterans available in trade talks.
According to TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger, the list would include forwards Kiefer Sherwood, Evander Kane, and Teddy Blueger.
“We know that Canucks management sent a note to all general managers across the league on Monday just stating that they’re willing to listen on their pending unrestricted free agents – not all of their veteran players,” Dreger said Tuesday on Insider Trading.
“[General manager] Patrik Allvin is also looking for a specific return. We know that he covets a centreman, but if there’s a younger player that’s made available, why wouldn’t the Canucks move an unrestricted free agent – pending, now – as opposed to the chaos around the trade deadline?”
Sherwood, 30, has 12 goals and 16 points in 23 games this season after recording career highs in goals (19) and points (40) in 78 games last season. The winger leads the team in goals in his second season with the club. The 6-foot, 194-pound winger led the NHL with 462 hits last season, finishing with 156 more than the next closest player, Mathieu Olivier.
Sherwood is making $1.5 million this season and is in the final year of a two-year, $3 million deal he signed with the team on July 1, 2024. The Columbus, Ohio native has recorded 55 goals and 114 points in 288 career games with the Canucks, Nashville Predators, Colorado Avalanche, and Anaheim Ducks.
Kane, 34, has three goals and 11 points in 23 games with Vancouver this season, his first with the club after he was acquired from the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for a fourth-round pick this past summer. He is in the final year of a four-year, $20.5 million contract he signed with the Oilers in 2022. The Vancouver native has 329 goals and 628 points in 953 career games with the Canucks, Oilers, San Jose Sharks, Buffalo, Sabres, and the Winnipeg Jets/Atlanta Thrashers franchise.
Blueger, 31, has played just two games this season due to a lower-body injury, although he took a step in his recovery last week as he skated in a non-contact jersey during the team’s optional skate on Thursday. The veteran centre has registered one goal this season, his third in Vancouver. He is due $1.8 million in the final year of his contract. The Riga, Latvia native has 50 goals and 153 points in 420 career games with the Canucks, Vegas Golden Knights, and Pittsburgh Penguins.
The Canucks (9-12-2) have gotten off to a slow start this season as they struggle with several injuries up front to Blueger, Filip Chytil, and Nils Hoglander. The signing of David Kampf – following his contract termination with the Toronto Maple Leafs – has provided some level of relief, but the Canucks would prefer to continue adding up the middle.
The Canucks have dropped three straight games and sit seventh in the Pacific Division and 14th in the Western Conference with 20 points, seven points behind the Utah Mammoth for the second wild-card spot.
Despite their spot in the standings, Dreger adds that Allvin is also willing to wait for the club to get healthy and battle for a playoff spot with the players they have in-house.
“If they don’t [find a deal] and they have to wait, they’re okay with that too. They need to get healthy; they want to continue to battle because they know what’s coming, and that’s the uncertainty around their captain, Quinn Hughes,” said Dreger. “If this season doesn’t improve, then as you get closer to the deadline, perhaps all bets are off and you have to revisit Hughes’ future in Vancouver- either at the deadline or in the off-season.”
The Canucks begin a four-game road trip tonight against the Anaheim Ducks before travelling to San Jose, Los Angeles, and Colorado before returning home for a game against the Mammoth on Dec. 5.
