Vancouver Canucks: Grading Jim Benning’s two trade deadline moves
On Monday, Vancouver Canucks general manager Jim Benning made two notable trades. Out go defenceman Erik Gudbranson and prospect Jonathan Dahlen. In come Tanner Pearson and Linus Karlsson. Here’s how Mr. Benning fared.
Just when it looked like Vancouver Canucks general manager Jim Benning was going to stand pat at the trade deadline, it was revealed that he beat the clock and wound up making a pair of deals after all.
The first move was sending out struggling blueliner Erik Gudbranson to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for forward Tanner Pearson, as reported by TSN’s Bob McKenzie. Then, Benning shipped out highly-touted prospect in forward Jonathan Dahlen to the San Jose Sharks, receiving prospect Linus Karlsson in return — per the Canucks’ official Twitter account.
Trading Gudbranson was received well by countless Canucks fans and pundits, as you probably noticed on Twitter. The same cannot be said about the Dahlen trade; the team surprisingly gave up on one of their few blue chip prospects.
But hey, the Markus Granlund-for-Hunter Shinkaruk trade looked iffy at first, but the Canucks wound up the clear winners in that one. Perhaps Benning will wind up with the better player here, though we won’t know for at least a couple of years.
Blueliners Alexander Edler and Chris Tanev — who have been heavily mentioned in trade rumours for a while now — end up staying put. Nonethless, Benning made a couple of big-time moves that sent shockwaves across Canuck nation.
Now, let’s take a look at how he did in the two moves.
Erik Gudbranson for Tanner Pearson. dark. Next
Erik Gudbranson for Tanner Pearson
There’s really no doubting this. Benning may have just pulled the best trade in his five-year career as Vancouver general manager. He unloaded struggling defenceman Erik Gudbranson, who was signed for two more years at $4 million per season.
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In return, he gets a talented 6-foot-1, 201-pound winger in Tanner Pearson — who’s only two seasons removed from a 24-goal, 44-point campaign. Per CapFriendly.com, Pearson is signed through 2020-21 with a $3.75 million cap hit. They’re saving money and getting the better player in return.
Though Gudbranson is a tough, high-character player with an honest personality, nobody can deny his struggles on the ice. He has a very poor minus-27 rating on the season, and Gudbranson didn’t refrain from self-criticism after the trade.
Benning was widely criticized for handing Gudbranson a three-year, $12 million extension just a year ago, since it’s not hard to find comparable players for much lower prices. Well, Benning got out of a contract that he knows wound up being a mistake.
Pearson gets a fresh start after a disappointing start to the season with the Los Angeles Kings (one assist in 17 games), and a frustrating tenure in Pittsburgh. He had just nine goals and 14 points in 44 games, but he should produce some much-needed secondary offence with Bo Horvat feeding him the puck.
This was an easy win for the Vancouver GM. Is it too early to say it’s the best trade he’s ever made?
Grade: A+
Next. Jonathan Dahlen for Linus Karlsson. dark
Jonathan Dahlen for Linus Karlsson
Well, this trade was quite surprising.
The Canucks acquired Dahlen from the Ottawa Senators in exchange for Alexandre Burrows two years ago. That looked like a huge win for Benning, having picked up a prospect with a strong skill set in exchange for a past-his-prime forward.
Even though he was viewed as of the top prospects in Vancouver’s system entering this season, Dahlen has been enduring a frustrating 2018-19. In 50 games with the AHL’s Utica Comets, Dahlen posted 14 goals and 29 points. Not bad, but not good enough for a player with so much potential and talent.
Benning later said that Dahlen’s agent, J.P. Barry), made a trade request just weeks before the deadline.
Well, Benning didn’t have much of a choice but to move out a player that was struggling, frustrated and in need of a new home. The only concern is if Benning got equal value in return for Dahlen.
Linus Karlsson hasn’t exactly been lighting it up for Karlskrona HK of Swe-1, with just four goals and 17 points in 48 games. Drafted with the 87th pick by the Sharks last year, Karlsson clearly has a lot of work and development ahead of him before Canuck fans can dream of seeing him in the NHL.
Dahlen is undoubtedly the more talented player here, and he has a better chance of being an NHL regular. Again, we won’t know the real winner of this trade for at least a couple of years. But for now, it’s tough to give Vancouver a high grade when they gave up on a young talent so early.
Grade: C-
dark. Next. Vancouver Canucks: Jim Benning's best and worst trades
Overall, it’s hard to complain about what Benning did overall at the trade deadline. He moved out a struggling Gudbranson and managed to find a better and cheaper player in return. Hopefully, Karlsson turns out to be the effective player that Benning is obviously keen on acquiring.
*Stats courtesy of Hockey Reference and HockeyDB*