The Vancouver Canucks finished the 2023-24 season first in the Pacific Division with a 50-23-9. Additionally, the club hosted its first Stanley Cup playoff game in Vancouver since 2015, beating the Nashville Predators in six games before falling to the Edmonton Oilers in seven games during the second round.
The last time the Canucks made a playoff appearance was the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs, as the club made it to the second round, losing in seven games to the Vegas Golden Knights. In that offseason, the front office failed to build off of their success, as they lost four of their top unrestricted free agents (UFA) and failed to return to the playoffs the following season.
The Canucks have nine UFAs this offseason and will have to avoid making the same mistakes. Along with losing out on their top four UFAs, the club’s new additions in 2020 didn’t improve the team. Therefore, President of Hockey Operations Jim Rutherford and general manager (GM) Patrik Allvin have to add through free agency to improve the roster.
2020 Free Agency Debacle
In 2020, the Canucks lost four key free agents after their playoff run due to a lack of cap space and their poor management team. Goaltender Jacob Markstrom, forward Tyler Toffoli, and defencemen Chris Tanev and Troy Stecher all left the club.
Markstrom was arguably the Canucks MVP during the 2019-20 regular season. However, when he suffered an injury in the second round of the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Thatcher Demko stepped up and helped force a Game 7 with his stellar play. Markstrom joined the Calgary Flames, but losing him didn’t hurt the team compared to the other departures of the other three players.
Losing Toffoli did a lot of damage to the Canucks top six for the following three seasons. Toffoli signed a four-year deal with the Montreal Canadiens with an average annual value of $4.250 million, a contract the Canucks should have found a way to match. Instead, Toffoli scored 26 goals that season with Montreal, while the Canucks failed to make the playoffs. With four key free agents, former GM Jim Benning said he ran out of time to re-sign the winger (from ‘Canucks GM Jim Benning ‘kind of ran out of time,’ couldn’t move money to keep Tyler Toffoli,’ The Province, February 4, 2021).
“It was our intention to try and get him signed and if we could have had a little more time, we could have tried to work through that,” Benning said. “It got to a point where I know Tyler wanted to come back and we were trying to figure it out.
“We kind of ran out of time with him getting offers and one he needed to take. We would have had to move money out.”
Tanev also joined the Flames, which hurt the Canucks in more ways than one. Along with Alex Edler, Tanev was one of the longest-tenured Canucks. He served as a locker room leader for the club’s young core while being a reliable right-shot defensive defenceman. Boeser praised him for his leadership years after his departure.
“He’s a weapon. He’s a top-five beauty in the league for sure,” Boeser said. “He’s a pro at everything. He was like a dad to me, Petey [Elias Pettersson], and Huggy [Quinn Hughes] when he was in Vancouver.”
Meanwhile, losing Stecher to the Detroit Red Wings further hurt the club’s blue line, as Tyler Myers was the only right-shot defenceman left. Stecher and Edler proved to be a reliable pair while playing alongside each other. The Canucks failed to replace both players, as they traded for Nate Schmidt, who was traded the following offseason, while Travis Hamonic didn’t cut it as a bottom-four defenceman.
Retaining Key Free Agents
The main takeaway from the 2020 offseason is the Canucks losing all four of their top-end UFA. The four big free agents this offseason are Elias Lindholm, Dakota Joshua, Nikita Zadorov and Tyler Myers. The key to the offseason will be to move on from a free agent when the club knows there is no chance for the player to return and start focusing on the next man.
Lindholm will be the toughest UFA to re-sign out of the four players but is the Canucks’ top priority. As a top-six centre, his next contract will likely include a cap hit near $7 million to $8 million, pricing him out of Vancouver. Therefore, the likelihood of him returning to the Canucks isn’t high.
However, the remaining three players could return, allowing the Canucks not to lose size. The least likely to return from the three is Zadorov. The 6-foot-6 blueliner’s agent and the Canucks are not in talks right now, as reported by Rick Dhaliwal. The Canucks know Zadorov’s ask, which is around five to seven years and close to $6 million. However, the defenceman does seem to want to return and the asking price could drop for Vancouver.
Myers and Joshua are two players that are likely to return. Although Myers is coming off a five-year deal with an AAV of $6 million, he won’t receive a deal with a similar term or cap hit at this point in his career. However, Myers could get a deal closer to $4 million in the open market but does want to stay in Vancouver as he spends his summers in British Columbia. Therefore, it won’t be a surprise if he takes a hometown discount and a deal closer to $3 million.
As for Joshua, his career year will lead to a bump in his cap hit. His career year performance where he scored 23 goals and posted 41 points in 63 games. A deal in the $3 million range is likely, but based on his play, size and skill, he could get closer to $4 million.
The Canucks have to re-sign at least two of their four key UFAs as all four played a big role in the team’s playoff performance. Additionally, they all contribute to the culture the Canucks are trying to create. Joshua and Myers are players who won’t cost the Canucks too much, while there is still a chance Zadorov returns, but Lindholm is likely gone. Therefore, the Canucks should try to re-sign Zadorov and Lindholm but not waste too much time as they did in 2020.
Improving Team Through Trades and Free Agency
The Canucks made a few additions in the 2020 offseason after losing out on their top four free agents. The club traded a 2022 third-round pick to the Vegas Golden Knights for Schmidt, while they signed Braden Holtby to split starts with Demko. Also, Hamonic joined the club out of training camp. All three signings failed to improve the Canucks roster, as the organization didn’t make it to the playoffs with a 23-29-4 record. Additionally, along with Schmidt, both Holtby and Hamonic departed the organization within the next year.
The Canucks will need to improve their roster on July 1 this year. The club needs a top-six winger, and depending on which free agent departs the team, they will also need to address those needs. There are options for wingers in free agency and trade, while there is a lot to choose from at defence in free agency. If Lindholm leaves, the Canucks will look to add a top-six forward. Toffoli is a UFA and could return to Vancouver this offseason. Meanwhile, if Joshua leaves, the Canucks will need to find a middle-six winger with size, and if Myers or Zadorov leave, they’ll need to find a second-pairing blueliner with size.
Rutherford and Allvin have done a good job of improving the roster over the past two offseasons. The organization added Andrei Kuzmenko, Joshua, Ilya Mikheyev, Carson Soucy, Ian Cole and Teddy Blueger. Joshua, Soucy and Blueger have been great signings, while Kuzmenko, Mikheyev and Cole had their moments. Additionally, they traded for Lindholm and Zadorov this past season. The front office will likely remain aggressive in the offseason and add the players that will improve their roster on July 1.
The 2023-24 Season is One to Build On
The Canucks failed to make the playoffs in the 2020-21 season after a disappointing offseason. The organization has to avoid making the same mistakes this offseason and re-sign a few of their top free agents. In 2020, the Canucks lost all four of their top UFAs in Markstrom, Tanev, Toffoli and Stetcher. This season, the club could re-sign three of their four UFAs but must improve their team in free agency. The 2023-24 season is one for the organization to build on and push the club in the right direction.
