Vancouver Canucks: Potential trade deadline targets

The Vancouver Canucks must decide what they’re going to do at the trade deadline. If they want to be buyers, they should take a look at these players.

With the way the season is going for the Vancouver Canucks, it’s difficult to say how active they will be in this year’s trade deadline. The Canucks are currently sitting at the top of the Pacific Division with 65 points and look to qualify for the playoffs for the first time since 2015.

The Canucks are tight against the salary cap, and that’s with Michael Ferland, Tyler Motte, and Jose Leivo all currently on injury reserve. Vancouver also doesn’t have a lot of tradeable assets aside from players with legitimate value like Jake Virtanen, Troy Stecher, Chris Tanev, and Thatcher Demko. With contract talks currently underway with Jacob Markstrom, it appears that Demko could be used as trade bait rather than taking the risk of losing him at the expansion draft.

This brings us to our main topic of the day. If the Canucks are active at the trade deadline, who would they look at acquiring to help bolster the lineup and help the team lock down a playoff spot? Here’s a look at some possible targets for the Canucks leading up to the trade deadline on February 24th.

Tyler Toffoli

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If Tyler Toffoli winds up being the top six forward that GM Jim Benning acquires before the NHL trade deadline, there are a few reasons why Toffoli could end up being a great fit for the Canucks.

Tanner Pearson’s and Toffoli’s relationship dates back to the 2013/2014 campaign when they combined for 26 points in the playoffs, and ultimately went on to win the Stanley Cup with the Los Angeles Kings. Jeff Carter was the other forward on that line and helped Toffoli’s line become a force to be reckoned with. If Bo Horvat can be a similar threat with Tanner Pearson, imagine what the acquisition of Toffoli could do for this team.

Toffoli wouldn’t just be a great fit for Horvat and Pearson, but he could be a guy that you can flip-flop with Brock Boeser if one of them isn’t quite feeling it on a given night. Boeser was recently demoted to the Canucks’ third line with Gaudette and Roussel, however, you just get the feeling that the change may not last very long.

If the Canucks can somehow manage to pull Toffoli away from Los Angeles, we could see a top 9 group of something like this.

Miller – Pettersson – Boeser

Pearson – Horvat – Toffoli

Roussel – Gaudette – Virtanen

Now that’s a pretty solid top 9 forward group. Toffoli currently has 14 goals, 15 assists, and 29 points in 52 games. Considering that his point totals aren’t quite what they were in past years, the Canucks may have some bargaining power to get a deal done without giving up too many assets.

Chris Kreider

Chris Kreider is another guy that has familiarity with a couple of players on the Canucks roster. Those players are JT Miller and Tanner Pearson. Kreider and Miller have played together since the 2012/2013 campaign and play very similar styles.

Kreider is known to be a defensively responsible forward with a knack for scoring goals. He also brings some size and jam to the lineup with a frame of 6’3″ and 217 lbs. As of right now, Kreider has 18 goals and 35 points in 50 games.  He would be a great fit with either the top line with JT Miller and Elias Pettersson, or on the second line with Bo Horvat and Tanner Pearson.

Chris Kreider is 28 years old and has participated in 510 NHL games, however, we will need to be wary of Vancouver’s salary cap situation, and if they even can afford to bring on a $4.6 million salary. With the amount of production from Kreider so far, you can expect the asking price to be somewhat lower.

Ondrej Kase

The 24-year-old winger for the Anaheim Ducks is currently signed to a $2.6 million contract, which is reasonable for the Canucks if they’re looking for help now, and for the future. Kase is known to be a relatively strong three-zone player and is still continuing to develop his game. The young forward has 6 goals and 21 points in 46 games so far this season, and should not be expensive to acquire if Benning decides to move forward with a trade.

Considering that Kase is another right-winger, he would be an excellent option to flip-flop with Jake Virtanen and Brock Boeser depending on which players are clicking on a given night.

Connor Brown

Connor Brown is another low-risk option who is currently signed for $2.1 million per year until the end of next season. The 26-year-old forward for the Ottawa Senators has put up 10 goals and 33 points in 52 games this season. His career-high in goals and points was back with the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 2016/2017 season when he scored 20 goals and 36 points. This year, however, Brown is on pace to shatter his point totals from the 2016/2017 season.

Brown is a versatile right-winger who can produce and move up and down the lineup with ease. He has a good stick on the forecheck and is capable of reading plays at a high level. Looking at the Canucks roster, Brown would likely be an option for the third line with Roussel and Gaudette. He can add speed, tenacity, and hockey IQ to the Canuucks roster, while moving up to the top 6 if needed.

The cost to acquire Brown likely would not come at a high price, but Benning would still need to do some work with the current salary cap situation if he wants to squeeze in Brown’s cap hit into the roster.

Brenden Dillon

The Canucks have had a noticeably improved defensive core this season, however, some work can still be done to help take the team to another level. This past summer Jim Benning signed Jordie Benn to a 2-year, $4 million contract, while also signing depth defenseman Oscar Fantenberg to a 1-year deal worth $850,000. Jordie Benn has proved to be a disappointment so far this season, notching just 6 assists and a -5 rating in 38 games.

Fantenberg has since been inserted into the lineup and has provided some stability for the group. In the 25 games he’s played so far this year, Fantenberg has a goal and 3 assists with a -3 rating. He has looked great at times but has also been exposed on a few occasions which may lead to the Canucks adding one more piece on the back-end before the deadline.

Brenden Dillon currently has 1 year left on his contract and would be a great fit for the Canucks. He plays on the left side and would likely take Fantenberg’s place on the bottom pairing as Dillon is a better all-around defenseman. Dillon is mobile and can make the first pass out of his zone. He also plays with the moxie that can be lacking at times with the Canucks.

The problem? Dillon’s cap hit is $3.27 million with 1 year left on the deal. The Canucks likely wouldn’t need to give up a lot to acquire Dillon, however, why not wait until you can acquire him for cash on July 1st? Time will tell if Benning would be willing to part ways with assets for a bottom pairing defenseman. It may be a more logical approach to stand pat at the deadline and sign him in the offseason.

Looking at some of the trade deadline options above, who do you think the Canucks should acquire? Should they go out and acquire a top 6 forward, stabilize the defense, or stand pat and wait for more options to open up in the summer? The next few weeks will be very interesting for Canucks Nation.