Vancouver Canucks should explore a trade for Phil Kessel

Pittsburgh Penguins sniper Phil Kessel appears to be available, and the Vancouver Canucks should try to trade for him.

The Vancouver Canucks have to upgrade the linemates for top centres in Elias Pettersson and Bo Horvat, because Brock Boeser can’t be the only reliable scoring winger here.

If he prioritizes finding a winger with the No. 10 pick, general manager Jim Benning should be able to find somebody good when it’s his turn to select. But Benning knows he can’t stop there. Not when there are plenty of big-time goal-scorers available in both the trade and free agent markets.

Well, one of the game’s premier scorers is apparently available in a trade. That man would be Pittsburgh Penguins superstar Phil Kessel, who seems like a good bet to leave the team that he won two Stanley Cup championships with.

Kessel comes in at No. 1 on TSN’s trade bait list. Consider what general manager Jim Rutherford talked about regarding Kessel, per TSN’s Frank Seravalli:

"Rutherford admitted that there were issues in the Penguins’ dressing room this season and Kessel’s friction with coach Mike Sullivan and even linemate Evgeni Malkin has been evident. The Penguins’ Kessel Whisperer, assistant coach Rick Tocchet, left to be the head coach of the Arizona Coyotes two seasons ago."

The two-time Stanley Cup champion has scored 20-plus goals in 11 of his 13 seasons. This includes six 30-goal seasons — and Kessel has hit the 80-point mark twice with Pittsburgh, morphing into more of a playmaker rather than a pure goal-scorer.

Per CapFriendly.com, Kessel carries an $8 million cap hit for three more seasons. Many championship contenders won’t be able to afford that unless they’re willing to give up a comparable player.

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But the Canucks are in a position where they could get Kessel at a reasonable price, without having to give up any of their top young stars.

Kessel’s hefty cap hit and age (32 in October), will limit the trade market. Some teams will be cautious about adding an expensive player with only so much cap space. This is where Benning already has an advantage.

The Canucks might be able to offer a package based around talented but underperforming winger Jake Virtanen — who would probably emerge as a consistent 20-30 goal man with Sidney Crosby or Evgeni Malkin. You know, kind of like most guys who end up playing with No. 87 or No. 71.

Maybe Vancouver is able to unload Brandon Sutter — who enjoyed three productive seasons in Pittsburgh as a reliable shutdown centre — as part of the package as well. He might rediscover his game in the Steel City, playing a more responsible role in both special teams departments.

The Canucks might have to give up a quality prospect as well, and maybe that’s 2016 first rounder Olli Juolevi. The Penguins need to add more depth on their back end, and maybe Juolevi would develop into a reliable top-four defender there.

That would seem like a reasonable trade for both sides. Virtanen isn’t a household name like Kessel, but he has the skill set to produce aplenty for both Crosby and Malkin. Juolevi would only sweeten the deal. Asking Pittsburgh to take back some salary (Sutter) would be a huge win for Benning, too.

If the Penguins wanted three pieces for Kessel, the Canucks would probably need to ask for an extra draft pick or decent prospect in return. But if the Pens are willing to surrender the consistent 30-goal man for the right price, Vancouver needs to do it.

Adding Kessel would take Vancouver’s offence to a whole new level. He could play on the second line with Horvat, or on the top unit with Petterson — allowing Boeser to reconnect with the future captain. Either scenario would be a win-win.

The Canucks desperately need another impact scorer to complement Pettersson, Horvat and Boeser. Kessel’s track record speaks for itself, and he could be the final piece in helping this team get back to the playoffs.

So if the Penguins are willing to deal Kessel without commanding anything ridiculous, the Canucks need to at least explore it. It’s not very often where consistent 30-goal stars hit the trade market, and Vancouver might be in a position where they can get him at a bargain price.