Vancouver Canucks Rumor: Talks with Forwards Hudler, Shipachyov Continue
The Vancouver Canucks might have found another scorer for their second line in one of Jiri Hudler and Vadim Shipachyov.
Back at the IIHF World Championship, we listed three players active in the tournament that the Vancouver Canucks could target. One of them was Russian center Vadim Shipachyov. According to Shipachyov’s agent Petr Svoboda, the Canucks are still interested in Shipachyov and Jiri Hudler, another client of Svoboda’s.
NHL Experience
Svoboda says Hudler could “sign today” which means he has concrete contract offers to sign. One of those offers seem to be from the Vancouver Canucks. So what would they get in Hudler?
Jiri Hudler is a 32-year-old forward who can play at center or on either wing. A native of the Czech Republic, Hudler made his NHL debut in the 2003-04 season and has since played in 759 games, recording 177 goals and 459 points. Despite being past the 30-year mark, Hudler set a career high in goals (31) and points (76) in the 2014-15 campaign.
In 72 games last season, Hudler had 16 goals and 46 points as he split the season between the Calgary Flames and the Florida Panthers. Hudler would bring a lot of experience and, more importantly, scoring touch to the Canucks’ middle six.
World Championship Top Scorer
Vadim Shipachyov might not be as good as Hudler, but he would definitely be the more interesting signing. The Russian center went undrafted and, at 29 years old, has yet to play a game in North America. So what could he provide?
Shipachyov, captain of SKA St. Petersburg, has 139 goals and 386 points in 460 games in the KHL, Europe’s/Asia’s top league. He also has some international experience, having represented Team Russia at three world championships. At the 2016 IIHF World Championship, Shipachyov recorded six goals and 18 points in 10 games to win the tournament’s scoring title.
You can be sure, this guy can score.
Outlook
Looking at both candidates, it is obvious that Vancouver wants to further increase the team’s scoring depth. Or rather create some scoring depth. The Canucks ranked 29th in goals for last season and are desperate for scoring behind the top line.
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Both Hudler and Shipachyov could be great middle-six scorers to play on a line with Brandon Sutter. Or, if head coach Willie Desjardins wants to spread out the scoring a bit, Hudler or Shipachyov could even slot in on the top line with Henrik and Daniel Sedin.
The only problem here is that Shipachyov is listed as a center and I don’t actually know if he has played on the wing before. If the Canucks want him to play center, that could push Sutter to the right wing, which he has played before. However, Sutter was acquired to become the new second-line center, so this wouldn’t make too much sense either.
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No matter which position Shipachyov plays or can play, he should be a great addition to the roster if he gets signed. While Hudler is likely asking for at least a three-year deal, Shipachyov would be happy to get an NHL contract and hopefully be fine with a one-year “show-me” deal.