I think the Vancouver Canucks' smartest move on Wednesday was staying out of the way while Canada's other teams took some body blows.
Taylor Hall was traded out of Edmonton just after I published yesterday's blog, which was a big shocker to me. I wonder if the deal was triggered by Columbus re-signing Seth Jones, taking another right-handed defenseman off the market? The Oilers were running out of options to make a desperately-needed upgrade.
There's lots of good material in Elliotte Friedman's last
30 Thoughts of the summer. He suggests that Peter Chiarelli had been targeting Adam Larsson of New Jersey for awhile, and Hall was the price that needed to be paid to get the deal done. Friedman adds that the Oilers would have been reluctant to bring on P.K. Subban's salary, with Connor McDavid due for a big raise when his entry-level contract expires in two years' time.
Then, Friedman goes on to say that he thinks the contract the Oilers have offered Milan Lucic is seven years and $42 million and that they've offered $5.5 million a season to Jason Demers. Unless Demers is only signing for two years, those deals are also going to take up cap space when McDavid steps up to the plate—big commitments, both of them.
I know there has been some talk about attitude issues with Taylor Hall, but in two years of dealing with him at the World Championships, he was always personable and available. We talked a lot, this year, about his chemistry with Connor McDavid—who was also his housemate off the ice. Trading Hall is a big risk to take for a defenseman who has not yet proven that he's a true top-two talent—and, presumably, Lucic.
Interesting to hear that Lucic's team meetings did not stop after he saw the Oilers on Tuesday.
Also, very quickly, it was oddly interesting to see both subjects of Jim Benning's tampering allegations get their fates sealed on Wednesday as well.
After I spent most of the year believing that Steven Stamkos would stay in Tampa Bay, my faith was shaken as the deadline neared, but he did in fact re-up with the Lightning for a deal that's about the same as what we heard was rumoured back in January.
Then, there's the P.K. Subban trade. Though Subban was wildly beloved in Montreal, Marc Bergevin elected to move him to Nashville in exchange for Shea Weber—a deal that has elicited early comparisons to the Patrick Roy trade in 1995 and even the Chris Chelios trade exactly 26 years earlier, on June 29, 1990.
There has been a lot of talk about how the Habs lose this trade because Shea Weber, who's four years older than Subban, is already on the decline before his 31st birthday in August. I tend to think he just picks his spots more now—his intensity was just fine in the playoffs, but I don't think Weber gives 100 percent every game anymore. I don't know if that will change in Montreal or not.
The contract situation is complicated. Subban is signed for six more seasons, till age 33, with a cap hit of $9 million a year. Weber's contract—originally an offer sheet by Philadelphia—is a 14-year pact that was signed before the last lockout and extends beyond the end of the current CBA.
As things stand now, the Predators could be on the hook for huge salary-cap recapture penalties if Weber retires before the end of the 2025-26 season, when he'll be 40. But the current CBA expires after the 2021-22 season—and can be terminated two years sooner. Who knows what the rules will be when Weber's deal finally ends??
Anyway—the bottom line for the Canucks in all this is that, despite Benning's comments last week, neither Stamkos or Subban is coming to Vancouver. Probably, neither is Lucic.
With Stamkos and, most likely, Lucic off the free-agent market, bargaining power increases for the other top names like Loui Eriksson, Kyle Okposo, David Backes and such.
Sounds like the Canucks are hedging their bets by inquiring about some lower-level players as well as their top targets.
I mentioned Jooris yesterday—a 25-year-old who wasn't tendered a qualifying offer by the Calgary Flames after playing 119 games for the team over the past two seasons. Corban Knight is also 25—and a bigger body than Jooris at 6'2" and 195 pounds. He spent time with the Flames while John Weisbrod was there, but was traded to the Florida Panthers in January of 2015 and split his time between the NHL and AHL last season.
I think Jooris or Knight—or even Gagner—would have to be treated as depth signings.
Today's the last day for buyouts, and six players were placed on waivers this morning. None of them is Alex Burrows.
I suspect a trade is still possible for Burrows, but he could be back next season.
Dan Hamhuis, on the other hand, will not. Elliotte Friedman spoke to him, and Hamhuis sounds like he is being proactive about his next move.
"The Canucks mentioned numerous times since last July that we would talk about a contract extension. We were excited about it right up to beginning of June. That’s when we were led to believe an extension was probably not coming. There’s always a chance it could work out, but its pointing towards their priority is a high-profile forward or two.”
Is he bitter at Vancouver?
“No, no. I don’t want people to think that. I believe all their talk was genuine. This is a fluid business. You’re not sure what the cap is going to be, what trades are out there. Ownership treated us unbelievably well here.”
Hamhuis told Friedman that he has spoken with three teams and some others have expressed interest, and that geography is not an issue.
"I’ve got lots of ‘top-4 D’ hockey left in me, and my goal in summer training is to be the best defenceman on my new team. I will find a team that values what I do."
I will be liveblogging free agency tomorrow morning for Bleacher Report, starting at 9 a.m. PT, so by the time we reconvene here, the big moves will most likely have been made.
It's tough to handicap what will happen with Vancouver tomorrow. If they make a big signing, my best bet is that it'll be Loui Eriksson. There hasn't been much buzz at all from his camp over the last couple of weeks—I think he's still in the mix for the Canucks.
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