The Canuck Way Mailbag: Virtanen, Malone, the defence, more
The Vancouver Canucks had a busy week signing Jayce Hawryluk, Adam Gaudette and Jake Virtanen to team-friendly deals. That and more in this week’s mailbag!
The Vancouver Canucks finally checked some boxes on their offseason to-do list. General manager Jim Benning re-signed Adam Gaudette and Jake Virtanen to budget-friendly contracts, and he signed free agent Jayce Hawryluk to compete in the crowded bottom-six.
Now, all he has to do is clear some money before next season begins. With the buyout option off the table, he will be left to twist another general manager’s arm to take on Brandon Sutter or Loui Eriksson’s contracts in a trade.
Hopefully, he won’t have to give up a first or second-round pick to do it. Most GMs seem reluctant to take on bad contracts in this flat cap world, so it’s looking more and more likely that those salaries will be buried in the minors to start the season.
Ideally, Benning is able to find a suitable trade partner, and improve his defence and top-six with another signing. Though at this point, it’s looking like Virtanen will be replacing Tyler Toffoli and one of Olli Juolevi, Jack Rathbone or Brogan Rafferty will be filling Troy Stecher’s shoes on defence.
It should be interesting to see what happens in the next couple of months. With what Benning has right now, he could ice a salary cap compliant roster by burying contracts in the minors and sending Micheal Ferland to long-term injury reserve (LTIR). However, that still won’t give him much room for injuries, but that’s a discussion for another day. Right now, let’s get to some of your questions!
If the Canucks make no more moves this offseason, how do you see them finishing next season.. Better, worse, or the same?
— Joe (@JoeTek99) October 23, 2020
If the Canucks do not make any more moves this offseason, they will be facing an uphill battle to make the playoffs especially if they are in the rumoured all-Canadian division. Nate Schmidt will help their transition game, but he’s not the penalty killer Chris Tanev was, so that could lead to more goals against on the power play. The uncertainty of having a rookie and the underwhelming Jordie Benn on the bottom-pairing could be concerning as well.
The top-six right now is banking on Virtanen and his ability to step up offensively, which is not ideal given his history in that role. The bottom-six should be bolstered by Hawryluk’s presence, but it’s still a crowded smorgasbord of unknowns. In a perfect world, Virtanen is on the third-line with Gaudette and Nils Hoglander and a more proven goalscorer is playing alongside Bo Horvat and Tanner Pearson.
So to answer your question, I think they are going to finish in the same position as last season, fighting for a wild card spot. Ultimately, I think there’s enough talent on the team to barely make the playoffs, but it will be a battle right to the end.
Though unlike last season, the Canucks are gambling on a lot of unknowns in their lineup, especially on defence. If the rookies are not ready, the defence core is worse than last season, and if injuries rear their ugly head, I’m not sure they have the depth to survive any significant losses to their top-four.
Do the Canucks make one more move to try and improve the defense group?
— Aaron (@bk656) October 23, 2020
If by some miracle Benning is able to move out Sutter and/or Eriksson’s contracts, I think he will make one more signing or trade to bolster the Canucks’ bottom-pairing. Players like Slater Koekkoek, Andy Greene or Oscar Fantenberg could fit the bill as affordable additions that should strengthen a defence that doesn’t really have a lot of experienced depth right now.
In your opinion what do Hughes and Pettersson contracts look like?
— Tomas Vessio™ (@TomasVessio15) October 23, 2020
At this point, especially with the flat cap being a thing for the next couple of seasons, I think both Quinn Hughes’ and Elias Pettersson’s contracts will be bridge deals rather than long-term ones. So, instead of the eight-year $10 million AAV cap hits, they could come in as three-year $5 million AAV contracts, similar to the deal Nikita Kucherov’s signed just before the 2015-16 season.
By the time those deals are over, Benning will be rid of all his bad contracts and should be freed up to sign Hughes and Pettersson to long-term deals. One thing is clear though, they are the future of this team and should be kept around as long as possible, no matter the cost.
Virtanen, Malone and the rookies
What are your overall thoughts on the Jake Virtanen contract? 2-years at $2.55 million per.
— PP1 PODCAST (@ThePP1Podcast) October 23, 2020
I think this contract was the best the Canucks could have asked for, especially at this point in his development. Virtanen did have a career-season in 2019-20, so he definitely deserved a raise, but not at the number an arbitrator likely would have given him. It’s not a long-term commitment either, so if he continues his inconsistent play, he could be easily traded at that term and cap hit.
Virtanen mentioned Benning’s critique at the end of the playoffs and how it motivated him to get better during the offseason, so hopefully the work he has put in pays off with a significant uptick in production.
If the Canucks do not make any more moves, he will be first in line to inherit the top-six spot vacated by Toffoli, so the pressure will be higher to produce at a consistent rate. For his sake, I hope everything falls into place this season and he finally becomes a significant threat in the top-six. If that happens, his contract will be one of the biggest bargains on the team.
Of all the rookies who will potentially get a shot at cracking the lineup next year... Hoglander, MacEwen, Juolevi, Rathbone, Rafferty... Who do you predict will have the best season?
— Brayden Ursel (@bkursel23) October 23, 2020
I am torn between Hoglander and Rathbone. Right now, I believe it’s going to be Hoglander, especially if he gets an opportunity in the top-six. Even if he’s playing with Gaudette on the third-line and the second unit power play, he should still get plenty of opportunities to put up points.
Despite his recent struggles in the Swedish Hockey League, I think he has the best chance of having a solid rookie season in the NHL in 2020-21. He should be in mid-season form when January comes around and could hit the ground running while everyone else is still in the starting blocks.
Although, if Rathbone has the same positive transition from the NCAA to the NHL as Hughes did, he could surprise everyone. His former teammate, Adam Fox, had a very solid rookie season with the New York Rangers when he posted eight goals and 42 points in 70 games, so if he can follow in his footsteps, that could be him in 2020-21. He has the skills and smarts to do it, and if he’s also given power play time on the second unit with Schmidt, the sky’s the limit for the Harvard University grad.
Can you give us an update on oft forgotten Canucks draftee Jack Malone? @ImUrHucklbrry
Jack Malone played for Cornell University in 2019-20 and posted two goals and eight points in 27 games after spending the last three seasons with the Youngstown Phantoms of the United States Hockey League (USHL). The COVID-19 pandemic has postponed NCAA hockey until 2021, so he’s not playing right now. He’s currently attending Cornell as a student majoring in applied economics and management, so he’s still practicing and working out for the eventual start of the 2020-21 season.
Malone remains an intriguing late-round prospect for the Canucks despite an average freshman season. He didn’t produce a lot of points but was a solid plus-11, which ranked second amongst all freshmen in the ECAC. His ice time was also limited which could have contributed to his lack of production. When his season finally gets going, he should get more of an opportunity as several high-profile players will be moving on to professional hockey.
When he was drafted, Malone was touted as a well-rounded forward with a nose for the net. As reported by Canucks Army’s Chris Faber, he also is a tireless worker ready to do anything to make himself better. So I have no doubt that he will be ready to go when he gets on the ice again.
That brings us to the end of yet another mailbag on The Canuck Way. The offseason is in full swing, and the Canucks roster is starting to take shape. There will undoubtedly be more movement, especially with how close they are to the salary cap.
Canucks: 3 players who need to overcome critics. dark. Next
So as we wait for the next move, keep those questions coming and I will endeavor to keep answering them every week. Keep an eye out for the tweet announcing the next one by following us on Twitter @FSTheCanuckWay.