Canucks roundtable: Who is the most important UFA to extend?
The Vancouver Canucks won’t have enough cash to extend all expiring contracts this offseason. Who are the most important players to re-sign moving forward?
The Vancouver Canucks have some valuable players in their roster that, if general manager Jim Benning can’t afford to re-sign or come to terms on an extension with, will soon be heading to the open market as unrestricted free agents.
Everything was going according to plan for the Canucks this season and right when all the hard work was finally going to be worth it, right when the Canucks were about to prove themselves a worthy playoff team, COVID-19 struck and shut down the NHL.
The hard work and incredible maneuvering of trades over the past year by Benning to acquire a playoff-ready team had finally arrived, only to be ripped away by the world’s currently disastrous circumstances.
Realistically, the fans may never get to see what this team was capable of doing given a proper playoff opportunity. The pieces put in place for this year’s playoff push could have done some damage, but regardless of if this season returns or not, likely this particular roster won’t still fit under the salary cap beyond the end of 2019-20.
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Regardless, moving forward it’s important for Benning to make the right decision on who to consider for an extension and who to let walk to free agency. It would have been a whole lot easier to make these decisions having seen this team in the playoffs, but that has yet to happen, and if it doesn’t, it’ll be that much more challenging to prepare for the future.
A playoff appearance would have done wonders in the world of trying to scope out this team’s cup window, but unfortunately for the Canucks and for Benning, they may have to do without it. So, is Jacob Markstrom the answer and true starting goalie moving forward? Or does Chris Tanev‘s elevated game alongside Quinn Hughes make him the best choice? What about Tyler Toffoli? He completes the team’s top-nine perfectly.
There are definitely some extremely tough calls to make, and a few different directions to consider, but regardless of how Benning decides to move forward, he best keep the future of this team in mind, as well as doing what’s best for the core of this organization.
The Canuck Way staff got together to discuss the options at stake here and what different routes can be taken concerning the team’s future. There are a few different opinions on who’s best to re-sign for next season and we are here to debate it. Who is the most important UFA to extend this offseason? Let’s dive in!
1. Jacob Markstrom
Re-signing Markstrom should unquestionably be general manager Jim Benning’s top priority this summer. Both the eye test and analytics prove this point tremendously. He finished fourth in save percentage among goalies who played at least 40 games this season, and although his 2.75 goals against average wouldn’t jump off the page, it omits the fact that the Vancouver Canucks deployed a very permissive defence that allowed a considerable amount of high-danger scoring chances on most nights.
The Canucks ranked 28th in the league in shots allowed per game, yet still, have a winning record thanks in large part to Markstrom’s stellar goaltending. Near the end of February, it was announced that Markstrom would miss some time due to injury. The Canucks then went 3-5-0 with the goaltending duo of Thatcher Demko and Louis Domingue and put themselves in the stressful position of scratching and clawing their way to the playoffs.
The 30-year-old has been arguably the team’s MVP over the past two seasons, his partnership with goaltending coach Ian Clark has worked out extremely well, and the Canucks have shown that they need him between the pipes if they wish to make the postseason
. Besides, with the large number of goalies heading to unrestricted free agency, and the uncertain salary-cap situation for clubs this offseason, who’s to say the market for Markstrom will be strong and result in him getting the amount of money or term he desires? Goalies can be risky, but as long as Benning doesn’t give him too much term, Markstrom should be a risk the Canucks are willing to take.
-Lucas Celle
2. Tyler Toffoli
The trade for Toffoli has been a great move for the Canucks. His on-ice chemistry with his new teammates clicked immediately; Toffoli was able to put up 10 points (six goals and four assists) in just 10 games.
It was the first time in his career that he played for a team other than the Los Angeles Kings, but he didn’t seem to have any trouble adjusting at all. He fit in right away and he played right next to the team’s best players.
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In an interview with Dan Murphy from Sportsnet, Toffoli talked about his time with the Kings and how experiencing their fall from success made him never want to be on a bottom-feeding team again. The Canucks are a young team on the rise, and they’re a great fit for Toffoli’s ambitions.
Toffoli can play on the penalty kill, is a strong two-way player, and puts up a consistent amount of goals. If he can produce pretty good numbers on a poor team like the Kings, you can only imagine what kind of numbers he will be able to put up with the likes of Bo Horvat and Elias Pettersson.
His addition to the right-wing solidifies the top-nine and makes this team a deep scoring threat. As long as Toffoli rides inside the Canucks’ top-six, he’d be reliable for 50-plus points per season.
At 28 years of age, he already has a Stanley Cup ring on his resume and has been surrounded by top-tier players to help him grow and learn as a player. Having such an experienced player is hard to come by, and Toffoli would be an excellent addition in the locker room to help nurture the next generation of Canucks.
-Jasmine Yen
3. Chris Tanev
Tanev is coming off a five-year contract worth $4.45 million per year. The Canucks should look at re-signing him over Markstrom and Toffoli for numerous reasons. Yes, Tanev is injury prone (he hasn’t played 70-plus games since 2014-15.) and just turned 30 in December.
Tanev has been a warrior for the Canucks. He is the best shot blocker on the team, and he logs around 20 minutes of ice time per game. Even on one leg and without a stick, Tanev is willing to block a shot or two. His hockey IQ and toughness are what the team will need for future playoff games.
Every team needs several veteran leaders, and Tanev has excelled in such a role. He’s been a good defensive partner for Hughes (probably his best option right now) and has helped him transition to the NHL. The longtime Canuck has been a great mentor for Hughes, Pettersson and Brock Boeser.
And hey, if the Canucks let Tanev go, we would also have to say goodbye to his adorable pug, Riley. And who wants to say goodbye to a face like that?
But all jokes aside, the Vancouver defence remains the weak spot of the team, and if they miss out on locking up their best stay-at-home blueliner? They will be in heaps of trouble. When you look at the whole picture, Tanev is the right man for an extension.
Joshua Rey
Final Thoughts
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The Canucks have multiple ways they can decide to take this in the offseason, and the decisions made will make a sizable impact on the team’s future, no doubt about it. Benning best tread lightly and think long and hard about this one, these next few choices may be the biggest ones of his career.