Canucks news: The latest on Jacob Markstrom Tyler Toffoli, more

The clock is ticking for the Vancouver Canucks to reach new deals with their pending free agents. Here’s the latest.

With free agency now just two days away, Vancouver Canucks general manager Jim Benning has to quickly decide on his plan of action.

Is he going to actually make a trade for Arizona Coyotes defenceman Oliver Ekman-Larsson? Better decide soon, because if not, he better use the remaining cap space to try and re-sign Jacob Markstrom, Tyler Toffoli and/or Chris Tanev, or at least find suitable replacements.

If Benning loses his No. 1 goalie, a top-six forward and a top-four blueliner, he’ll have limited resources to fill those gaps. The clock is ticking, and fast.

Brace yourselves for what will be a busy 48 hours. Here is the latest on Markstrom, Toffoli and more as free agency draws closer.

Toffoli headed to the market

There was optimism that the Canucks would be able to reach a new deal with Toffoli. But on Tuesday, Rick Dhaliwal of TSN 1040 and Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported that the 28-year-old is headed to the free agent market.

Dhaliwal noted that the Canucks weren’t able to “clear the space” to re-sign Toffoli, who proved to be a nice fit after arriving via trade with the Los Angeles Kings before the season went on pause.

Toffoli is one of the top forwards in this year’s free agent market. It’s reasonable to believe that he’ll land at least $5 million annually on his next deal. The cap-strapped Canucks knew they wouldn’t be able to retain all of their free agents heading into the offseason.

And it looks like Toffoli is on his way out of Vancouver. The two sides couldn’t reach a deal, and the 2014 Stanley Cup champion should have no problem landing a lucrative long-term contract that Vancouver wasn’t willing to give.

The Markstrom watch

It’s obvious that Markstrom is Benning’s top priority. But like Toffoli, it appears as though the 30-year-old is fully prepared to hit the open market.

On Wednesday morning, Irfaan Gaffar had this to share:

Speaking on TSN 1040 Wednesday, Jeff Paterson suggested that Vancouver’s star goalie “could essentially get the Loui Eriksson contract somewhere else,” noting that the team has a cap problem.

Eriksson signed a six-year, $36 million contract with the Canucks in 2016. He has two years left on the deal that has put Benning and company in a massive bind.

Satiar Shah of Sportsnet 650 suggested that movement protection “might be the sticking point” in contract negotiations.

If Markstrom hits the open market, Benning will have to bring in a veteran to help Thatcher Demko. There is no shortage of options, ranging from Marc-Andre Fleury to Braden Holtby to Corey Crawford to Henrik Lundqvist to possibly even Frederik Andersen.

Chris Tanev & Troy Stecher

Toffoli is on his way to the market. Markstrom might join him. And it also looks like Tanev, the second longest-tenured Canuck, is leaving the only NHL franchise he’s ever known.

Dhaliwal had this tidbit to share, which suggests that Tanev isn’t keen on taking a hometown discount:

Vancouver has already qualified Jake Virtanen, but as of Wednesday morning, the team had yet to make a decision on Troy Stecher, per Dhaliwal.

Conclusion

It’s anybody’s guess what happens on the Ekman-Larsson front. But barring any late developments, it looks like Vancouver will lose both Toffoli and Tanev in free agency.

This hasn’t been an inspiring start to the week by any means, and it’s imperative that the Canucks get their backup plans in order if they manage to lose all three of Toffoli, Tanev and Markstrom.