Vancouver Canucks must decide: Bye, Buy or Bi

The Vancouver Canucks are coming off of their mandatory five-day break and have a lot of decisions to be made with the trade deadline looming. There are three outcomes for the Canucks players; Buy, bye or bi.

Buy

There are somethings the Vancouver Canucks should be buying in on. The team should start buying in on Chris Tanev. Tanev is the Canucks trade asset that would generate the most return, but he is also their best chance at keeping the puck out of the net.

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Tanev is the stay at home defenceman that keeps the defence balanced. Whoever Tanev plays with benefits from it, the fact that he is never out of position calms the nerves of a Ben Hutton or Alex Edler.

Plain and simple, Tanev is a key player for the Canucks and they should not move him for a second-round pick and a prospect. He is worth more to the Canucks not only now but in the future as we see the likes of Olli Juolevi and even Rasmus Dahlin? #RaceForDahlin

Brock Boeser is an all-star and has a shot at 25 goals by the all-star break. Not only are people buying his jersey, but he has quickly become the brightest star the Canucks have seen since Markus Naslund.

The Vancouver Canucks are buying in on Boeser and after he represents the Canucks at this year’s all-star game he will be on track to becoming one of the National Hockey League’s shining young guns.

Bye

The trade deadline is approaching and there are some players the Vancouver Canucks should say bye to if they are committed to a capital “R” Rebuild.

Thomas Vanek was signed for a one year, two-million-dollar contract on September 1st, 2017. The original belief through Canucks fans was that hopefully he would perform enough to fetch the team a third-round pick at the deadline.

Vanek has quickly become a fan favourite with his ability to play up and down the lineup and still produce, as he has 32 points in 45 games thus far.

Related Story: 3 trade destinations for Erik Gudbranson

The problem is that Vanek just celebrated his 34th birthday, luckily, he has been great in the Canucks room. Vanek has been a mentor to Brock Boeser and he clearly knows how to score powerplay goals. The Canucks should deal Vanek to a cup contender like the Pittsburgh Penguins or the Tampa Bay Lightning, rumours are also going around about the Boston Bruins.

Another player the Vancouver Canucks should say bye to is Erik Gudbranson. Gudbranson has been a flop in Vancouver so far and on the trade deadline the Canucks should try to cash in on the 26-year-old right handed defenceman.

There are a lot of teams around the league that would look to add a player like Gudbranson. He has grit, gets along with every player in the room and believes in sticking up for a teammate. Expect a trade to a team in the east that is looking to make a playoff push or a powerhouse team looking to add some depth at defenceman.

Bi

There are a few players on the fence in the Vancouver Canucks organization, they can go both ways.

Michael Del Zotto has been involved in recent rumours linking him to the Chicago Blackhawks. If there is any truth to these rumours the Canucks should explore the option to move Del Zotto. He looked good at the beginning of the season but has had some bumps in the road with his first season as a Canuck.

If the deal makes sense, then the Canucks should move Del Zotto. The Canucks need to load up Jim Benning’s arsenal at the draft and if the Canucks can extract a pick or a prospect I believe this is an opportunity for Benning to explore.

Sven Baertschi is a curious case, he has been great with the Canucks when he is put together with Bo Horvat and Brock Boeser. The B-53’s is the name of that line and they play great together.
There are two questions when it comes to Baertschi, what is his worth and how much will he be to re-sign? It’s intriguing to see what the 25-year-old could fetch back in a trade.

On the contrary, he will probably stay here in Vancouver. Baertschi is a restricted free agent after this season and it will be interesting to see what kind of deal the Canucks will come to with him in the offseason.

Next: Vancouver Canucks roundtable: Gaudette, draft picks, Benning’s future

In the end the Vancouver Canucks have a lot of decision to make before the trade deadline and it is time for General Manager Jim Benning to show what he can do. One thing is for certain, expect a few of Canucks to be saying “Bye Bye Bye” between now and the deadline. Let’s see Benning go to work and maybe we won’t be saying “Bye Bye Bye” to him in the offseason.