EternalCanuckFan

While I agree that NYR is in probable cap trouble, Hayes is with the Flyers now so his $7M+ contract is Philly's problem. NYR should be able to weather the storm soon but they have to make some moves to clear cap. Their prospects played pretty well last year so assuming they take a step forward, the depth may not be that bad. They are certainly banking a lot on their stars and their prospects though. My guess is NYR will buyout Shattenkirk to clear some cap space and then trade Kreider at some point this season. There will probably be other moves.

While I would love to see MacEwen get a shot in the NHL, I would rather see the Canucks have Ferland in the line-up. Ferland has two 40-point seasons under his belt and worked his way up the line-up with the Flames. Given the injury history of the Canucks, MacEwen has the opportunity to do that as well. If the rumors are true that Ferland's contract may be for less than $4M, then provided there's no ridiculous trade or movement protection, that could be great value in a trade. If MacEwen ultimately pushes his way into the line-up, then that could work out well for the Canucks.

While it's possible that the Canucks will deal Sutter this summer, I have a feeling he'll start the season with the team so I would exchange Gaudette with Sutter. Not as complimentary a skill set as Gaudette would be with Baertschi and Virtanen, but still not a bad line-up. I'm also now expecting Ferland to possible ride shotgun with Pettersson and Boeser with Miller moving to RW with Horvat and Pearson. Miller and Ferland may rotate between the two lines. Leivo can move up and down the line-up on either wing. While it sucks for Leivo to be pushed down the depth chart, I don't think this will be like the Leafs where he couldn't even get PT.

My guess is Ferland will come in slightly less than Johansson money. Ferland has been proven to be a decent complimentary player but he has been a bit less productive than Johansson. If I understand correctly, even if the Canucks are over the cap before the start of the season, since Roussel is expected to be in LTIR until December, they should have no trouble fitting Ferland under the cap to start the season. They'll probably have to paper down Pettersson and Boeser to clear cap space to start the season in addition to sending down Eriksson and Schaller to gain even the little bit of cap relief that would provide. CapFriendly has Gaudette, Sautner and Brisebois on the Canucks roster and they presumably will also be demoted. That alone would save the Canucks a lot of cap space to allow them to rejig their roster after the season has started. The addition of Ferland presumably spells the end of Goldobin. He was already hard pressed to find a role with the team but with the addition of Ferland, I really can't see how Goldobin will have a roster spot. He's skilled but he doesn't seem to have the type of game that the Canucks want to have on their roster. The Canucks could obviously still find a way to clear cap space before the end of the summer. Perhaps the Canucks may have a trade to announce in the next few weeks simply based on the glut of forwards that we have. They could wait until Roussel is closer to being healthy but if the rumors are true that the Canucks are looking to acquire Lucic for Roussel (another forward swap...), then maybe there are other contracts being exchanged as well. I would think there would have to be a 3rd team involved to provide the Oilers and the Canucks with cap relief though. Pure speculation on my part...

Yeah, that's exactly the first thought that came to my mind. Jokiharju had promise so dealing him now definitely suggests the Blackhawks feel that Boqvist will be ready soon. Also surprised the Sabres have given up on Nylander already but I guess they're pretty set up front. Will be interesting to see what they do with their glut of RHD. While Jokiharju is presumably NHL ready, he is still waiver exempt so I suppose it's possible the Sabres might not feel much pressure to make a trade for awhile.

It sounds like the Sharks wanted Perron partly because he played with Meier in '15-'16 with the Huskies. As for the Sharks moving on from Perron, perhaps moving him may have involved factoring in his waiver eligibility this season, contract management and making space for younger players in their system. Tom Pyatt is still a decent AHL player and may be a good veteran for the Sharks to have around. Maybe those things plus moving up a bit in the draft made Perron expendable. There was an article (might be the PITB article) mentioning that Perron has known for awhile that he needs to add weight and strength to compete in the pro's but that has been a struggle. Couple that with less than ideal usage in Perron's first couple years of pro and you can see why he's still a longshot for the NHL. Still, Perron had a decent AHL season last year and should help the Comets while also being a reasonable depth player for the Canucks (if he makes it past waivers).

If I remember correctly, Nichushkin was a legitimately exciting prospect when he was drafted with the main problem being inconsistency in engagement in games. When Nichushkin was really engaged, then he was a force. When he wasn't, then he wasn't really as much of a factor. It was a knock on Nichushkin then and, unfortunately, he wasn't able to shake it. From what I can tell, the scouting for Podkolzin pretty consistently describes him as never turning off his motor who, as a result, makes a difference in many facets of the game. I think the main question for Podkolzin is how high his ceiling is - will he be a big offensive contributor or will he be a great two-way energy winger with some offensive upside. It doesn't seem like there's much doubt that Podkolzin will be a player when he decides to make the jump based on his current trajectory. It's a reminder of how quickly things can change after draft day. To get on the radar of teams, all these guys have had to show that they possess the physical skills and at least some of the mental attributes needed to succeed, but not everyone can continue that. Podkolzin could obviously take steps backward in the next few years but that's the mystery of the draft. Any number of things can impact a player - family responsibilities, injuries, mental health, etc. It's too bad for Nichushkin that his career has floundered to the point that he's not really a viable NHL player. We can all hope that Podkolzin is better able to transition into pro-life and eventually to the NHL.

Agreed. They're both solid complimentary players who can contribute in the top-6 but that's about as far as I would say they are alike. I don't dislike Johansson but Miller has shown that he can play the body as well as contribute on the score sheet. If the rumors are true that GMJB accepted the initial ask for Miller then that's a bit concerning but, at the same time, maybe that happened because the asking price for like players has been even higher and that seemed like a fair price. Even then, doesn't mean that the Canucks should have waited for Johansson to hit UFA before trading for Miller.

Seems unlikely that Labanc approached the Sharks about signing a $1M contract but whatever the reason is, that is an amazing 1-year deal for the Sharks. They weren't really even in cap trouble but I guess Thornton is still not signed and I presume they'll try to work something out if he wants to come back.

I think we were all expecting for something to be done this summer with Eriksson based on the media reports that came out shortly after the end of the season. At this stage however, I'm not expecting anything to happen and I think it's very possible that Eriksson will still be a part of the Canucks' organization in the Fall. If rumors are true that Eriksson's family has moved back to Dallas, then instead of a trade to Dallas, perhaps it's in preparation for Eriksson to be loaned to the Texas Stars if there is indeed too big a rift with coaching/management and he cannot otherwise be traded. It's a move that would basically be what the Canucks did with Gagner and the Canucks would save a small amount on cap. They would need at least another year of this (if I'm not mistaken) until his contact becomes a lot more reasonable to buyout but he might also be worthwhile to have on the books at that point for exposure in the expansion draft. Judging by how much cap trouble a lot of teams are in right now, I don't see much of a market for Eriksson. I know CapFriendly shows the Canucks in a bit of cap trouble but if you remove a few of the players who are probably going to be AHL bound to start the season (e.g. Gaudette, Sautner, etc.), then they're actually not in too bad of a spot. With Roussel probably starting the year on LTIR, the Canucks can also draw cap management out over first couple months of the season. I know GMJB and management get a lot of criticism for their cap management. A good amount of the criticism is justified but the Canucks cap situation is more manageable than what other teams seem to be experiencing (e.g. Toronto, Calgary, Edmonton, NYR, etc.). They can obviously still shoot themselves in the foot but so far this summer, it hasn't been so bad. In some ways, the uncertainty about Luongo might have helped to inject a bit of healthy anxiety about over committing dollars this summer and now that Luongo's recapture is a known thing for the next 3-years, it can be factored in accordingly (instead of being like the Sword of Damocles waiting to drop at any moment). Obviously if things are particularly bad with Eriksson then management should try to move him out but my sense is that this is going to take a long while to settle, ideally without costing the Canucks too much (e.g. Toronto having to deal a 1st Rd pick to get rid of Marleau's contract). Would love to be wrong though.

Thanks! That does help. Good that Bailey won't count against the vet limit.

Would Bailey count against the veteran limit for Utica? I'm assuming that's where Bailey would ideally end up. He'll need to clear waivers to be assigned which isn't really a loss for the Canucks if that happens but is curious. Adding Bailey should be good for overall depth but perhaps the Canucks are looking at shipping out a younger player or a prospect. Perhaps the Canucks are looking at including Leivo in a trade? Virtanen is a possibility too but I don't think this management group is ready to give up on him yet.

Both NYR (they have about $8-$10M in cap space) and VAN probably need to shed cap. Curious if a deal could be made involving Eriksson, Sutter, Shattenkirk and a forward or two with larger contracts from NYR. They need to re-sign Trouba, Buchnevich (21 goals last year) and Lemieux and I'm not sure if their current space allows them to fit the first two. I could see the Rangers having interest in Sutter to hopefully take harder minutes from Howden and Andersson. Maybe the Canucks could retain some salary and take back Shattenkirk and Strome (maybe with some salary retained by NYR to make everything work). Not sure if Eriksson has a relationship with Lundqvist but maybe there's something positive there. Strome can play C and RW which gives the Canucks options. He's a UFA next summer so if he works out, then maybe he can be kept longer or he can otherwise be a placeholder for Gaudette. Would be great if the Canucks could pry Kreider out too but I have no idea how that would work cap wise and doubt NYR would include him in this kind of deal. He should be worth more, especially at the TDL, but who knows, he's a UFA next summer too so maybe his value won't be that great.

Leafs still have a cap nightmare to deal with since they still need to sign Marner, Ceci and now Kerfoot. They have $11M to do this. They don't have a backup goalie yet either, and I guess they will run with Marincin and Dermott or Holl as 5, 6, 7. Rielly-Barrie and Muzzin-Ceci is presumably their new top 4 though.

I don't know much about Graovac but judging from his stat sheet and PIMs, he doesn't seem like a guy that mixes it up that much despite his size.

Should be decent depth in Utica. If MacEwen plays with Graovac, that'll be a big forward line.

Anyone feel like the Rangers are trying to win one for Lundqvist?

My guess is Nylander might be going the other way since Vegas can't take any salary back.

That's a solid return for the Cap's unless Burakovsky somehow turns into a 50+ point player. It could happen given the way the Av's are built, but that's the risk that Av's are taking. Still, Burakovsky will give the Av's more depth at forward though it will be interesting to see how much he signs for. This also frees up the Caps to re-sign Vrana without having to worry too much about cap space for the balance of the roster.

It's possible that the bonus is affecting a trade but I don't know if there's much of a market for Eriksson. From the acquiring team's perspective, the main benefits of adding Eriksson to a team that needs to reach the cap floor are that his actual paid salary will be a lot lower than his cap hit and his contract is buy-out friendly from an actual cash standpoint. Of the anchor contracts around the league, Eriksson's does seem to be a bit more palatable for a cash strapped team that needs to reach the floor, but I still can't see such a team willing to acquire Eriksson without some kind of sweetener. The cap situation for all NHL teams is kind of a mystery right now so it's possible that just adding Eriksson to reach the cap floor may be attractive for a team like Ottawa but I'll believe it when I see it. I'm curious if a team like Ottawa may be willing to accept a sweetener like Goldobin with Eriksson however. I'm not sure where Goldobin fits on the roster this season and while it would be sad to see him dealt, if he has any value at all then I would be willing to add him as a sweetener to a team like Ottawa to take Eriksson. The Senators need players anyway and even if Goldobin has had some struggles, he's still very talented and might do better out east. Can't hurt to have a player like Chabot either. Maybe adding Goldobin would help the Canucks receive a low pick in return to balance the deal.

I think Myers would be a good fit for the Canucks but hoping the cap and term aren't too bad from a value perspective. Saw a tweet where Friedman doesn't think the deal will be $7M+ so that's good but I suppose it could still be $6.99M :P. Even if the Canucks sign Myers for around $7M a year though, that cap hit may actually not be too bad even factoring in extensions for Pettersson and Hughes. Neither Jake or Gaudette are likely to get a big raise unless they both have huge years this season. While we hope that is the case, we'll just have to see. Considering that Pearson, Edler, Sutter (assuming he's not traded), and Baertschi's (also assuming he's not traded) contracts are all up in two-years, that clears up about $17M in cap space depending on what else comes in during that time. Capfriendly is showing about $55.7M in cap space in 2-years. Beagle and Roussel obviously are still big cap hits at that time, but there's a possibility they could be traded or snapped up in the expansion draft which would clear more cap space. Add to that the possibility that in 2-years, the Canucks could have Woo, Podkolzin, Madden and Hoglander become regulars on ELCs which could further help the Canucks window of competitiveness. The wildcard in the future cap mix for the Canucks are at goaltending. The Canucks are currently in a great position at goal from a cap perspective but Markstrom's a UFA next summer and Demko is still unproven. While I think management might be a bit overly optimistic about how competitive the team is right now, I think there's a decent chance that they are in fact rounding into a competitive team that could compete for a bottom-tier playoff spot over the next couple of years and may have their ranks swelled after that IF current prospects turn out to be as good as we hope. Myers will help make-over and solidify the D even if he's not necessarily a game-changer (Hughes is technically the game-changer even if that may be placing too much on his shoulders) and Miller gives the Canucks a solid top-6 forward who should compliment the core young players well. Now if only the team could stay healthy for most of the season...

If the Canucks want to make a splash or two after re-signing their RFAs and possibly signing Myers, they're going to have to move out a contract or two. Burying Schaller and Spooner with the Comets will free up some cap space but not enough to make a splash. Eriksson's contract is really the anchor right now since a buyout only gives them something like $0.5M in cap relief for the next two-years. Even in a trade, there's limited room for the Canucks to take back salary so I'm not sure they could even make a deal for Ristolainen work if they ship out Tanev for him (assuming that's what the Sabres were prepared to accept).

End of a great career. Too bad injuries caught up with Luongo. If this is a straight up retirement rather than one of those LTIR unfit to play situations, then yikes, doesn't this burn the Canucks with a $3M cap hit for the next 3-years? That would lower the current cap space of about $17.5M to $14.5M which puts the Canucks in a cap crunch to re-sign Boeser, their RFAs and additional help. No hard feelings to Luongo of course for the likely decision to straight up retire, this just works out terribly for the Canucks. If Boeser is re-signed for a $6M hit (irrespective of term - this is also lower than what Boeser could get), then that leaves $8.5M to re-sign 8 RFAs of which Leivo, Goldobin and Motte are most likely to be in the NHL. They still need to sign at least two D (one of which would occupy a top-4 role) and presumably a 3rd D for added NHL depth though this might accelerate the need to have Juolevi play a big role at the NHL-level. I might be mistaken but management could open up cap space by burying part of the Spooner and Schaller contracts in the minors but that won't be that much help. Eriksson's contract is looking way more like an anchor at this point. While I wasn't too troubled by Roussel's and Beagle's deals, if it was possible to sign them each for less than $3M per year, then those extra dollars may be that much more important now. Not sure if buyouts will benefit the Canucks too much at this point. There have to be some trades upcoming though I'm thinking the odds of Eriksson being exchanged for another bad contract may be less likely now since the Canucks would want to clear cap space themselves.

Hard to see Hutton as a 1st Rd pick but when you consider that Slater Koekkoek was picked in the 1st Rd, picking Hutton in the 5th Rd looks like a steal. I wrote in another thread that it's also worth considering what would happen if the Canucks did qualify Hutton and then have him receive a generous arbitration award. It would basically require them to give up a contract spot and, more importantly, a significant amount of cap space, to a player whose performance would otherwise indicate should be paid quite a bit less. Even if they limited the term to 1-year, unless Hutton were to surprise and improve his performance (which is still possible but becoming less likely), there's a good chance that they would have let him walk away in free agency since it doesn't seem like the trade market is that great for him. It sucks, of course, that the Canucks could lose Hutton without gaining an asset - I think he's done enough to show that he is an NHL player - but the benefits of not signing him to a much too expensive contract are important too. At this stage, I'm hoping the Canucks don't hamstring themselves on an overly lucrative deal for Myers but that remains to be seen...

I personally wish Gaunce was qualified but clearly he's not viewed highly by this management group. If anything, Gaunce seems like a good depth player that could be kept around for depth with the Comets. Are there that much better UFA depth Cs or LWs available? I suppose the Canucks could still re-sign Gaunce but looks like it's a farewell to another former 1st Rd pick. The Canucks are heading into free agency with quite a few contract spots open so it will be very interesting to see how things unfold.