Vancouver Canucks 2019 free agent targets: Kevin Hayes

With plenty of cap space to work with, the Vancouver Canucks need to sign a reliable secondary scorer, and Kevin Hayes fits the bill.

Vancouver Canucks general manager Jim Benning needs to bolster the top six this offseason, and his first opportunity will come at the 2019 draft in June — where the team will pick 10th.

But adding one forward — hopefully a winger — won’t be enough to fix the lack of secondary scoring. Elias Pettersson and Bo Horvat need an extra winger on their respective lines. Ideally, Benning would draft one forward then sign another in free agency.

It doesn’t make a whole lot of sense for Benning to break the bank on top free agents like Matt Duchene and Artemi Panarin. Both figure to cost at least $7.5 million a season annually — likely more. Benning cant take that risk after the Loui Eriksson contract debacle.

That doesn’t mean Benning should only shop in the bargain bin, however. The team will have just over $26 million in cap space this offseason, per CapFriendly.com. If anything else, Benning can afford to hand out a four-to-six year deal worth around $5 million a season — preferably a player that’s in their mid-to-late 20s — and not their 30s.

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That’s what makes Winnipeg Jets centre and pending UFA Kevin Hayes the ideal free agent target for Benning.

Centre is his natural position, but the New York Rangers also tried Hayes out at winger during the 2018-19 season, so the Canucks would be getting a versatile winger that can play anywhere.

If anything else, Hayes would be a third-line centre upgrade over Brandon Sutter, who is unable to stay healthy and only puts up around 20-30 points a season.

Hayes — unlikely to be retained by the Jets due to salary cap woes — scored 19 goals and 55 points this season. He brings excellent size (6-foot-5, 216 pounds), and uses his body to crash the net and create havoc.

Hayes has scored 17 or more goals in four of his first five NHL seasons, and he only averaged 15:44 time on ice per game during his five years with the Rangers. With an expanded role in Vancouver, Hayes might grow into a 20-25 goal and 50-point player.

Unlike Eriksson, Hayes wouldn’t come with many risks. He just turned 27 years of age, and he’s played at least 71 games in each of his first five seasons. Hayes’ production has also been consistent, so the Canucks know what they would be getting from him: A physical do-it-all forward who should push for 20-plus goals on an annual basis.

Because Hayes has never scored more than 55 points in a season, and because this free agent class is loaded with a handful of superstars, Hayes should come in at a reasonable price. Perhaps he could be had on a five-year deal worth around $5 million a season. That’s what a good second-line player costs today, but Hayes would be worth the investment.

The Canucks would have Pettersson, Brock Boeser and perhaps their 2019 first rounder on the top line. That would let Hayes and Tanner Pearson slot in with Horvat on the second line, giving the Canucks enough fire power p front to to shore up the top six unit.

Hayes does just about everything you want in a second or third line player, and because he could be had at a reasonable price, the Canucks need to have him on their radar when free agency starts on July 1st.