Five NCAA free agents that the Vancouver Canucks should pursue

The Vancouver Canucks are no strangers to dipping their toes into the NCAA free-agent rankings. In past years, the Canucks have inked players like Brogan Rafferty, Marc Michaelis, Josh Teves, and the most successful of the bunch, local product Troy Stecher to contracts.

Signing college free agents is a great way to bolster a prospect pool, especially when you have traded a few prospects or picks away in recent years. It is unlikely a team will find a top-end player through the college free agent signings, for every Torey Krug or Neal Pionk; there will be a Max Veronneau or a Jimmy Vesey. But through these signings, you are very likely to find an already developed player ready to contribute as a depth piece. Look no further than Pittsburgh Penguins winger Zach Aston-Reese who has carved out a role as an excellent two-way bottom-six winger.

Jim Benning has been no stranger to his desire to add college free agents in past years, and it is reasonable to believe that they will very well be in the hunt for some of the big names in this year’s college UFA class. Here are five players that the Canucks should be interested in pursuing.

Matt Kiersted – LD, University of North Dakota, Senior                                                    UPDATE: Signed with the Florida Panthers

The Canucks are quite familiar with the University of North Dakota’s hockey breeding grounds, with the 2016 signing of heralded UFA defenseman Stecher and 2015 first-round draft pick Brock Boeser.

Regarded as the cream of the crop in this year’s college UFA class, defenceman Matt Kiersted will have a long list of interested suitors. The Canucks should definitely be among those. Kiersted emerged as one of the best NCHC defencemen, anchoring the blue-line at the University of North Dakota, playing in all situations, and being named to the First Team All-NCHC.

The puck-moving defenseman has put up solid numbers in the past two seasons, coming close to a point-per-game in each of them. Kiersted’s powerplay presence and hockey IQ projects very well to the next level, and he should carve out a regular role on an NHL team. Similar to the aforementioned Stecher, Kiersted is not the biggest or strongest player out there, but that hasn’t held him back due to his excellent skating and hockey smarts.

Kiersted had his pick of NHL teams last year but decided to go back to school in hopes of winning a national title.

“Once you [start] talking to those teams, it all becomes real. I never really pictured myself in a spot like this. I had to follow my heart. And my heart was here at UND,” said Kiersted to The Rink Live as he announced his decision to come back to UND for his senior season.

Jordan Kawaguchi – LW, University of North Dakota, Senior                                  UPDATE: Signed with the Dallas Stars

The pride and joy of Abbotsford, BC, should be the likeliest of the five to sign with the Canucks. The ultra-skilled winger played his junior for the Chilliwack Chiefs of the BCHL before heading to the University of North Dakota for his collegiate hockey career. Like his teammate Kiersted, Jordan Kawaguchi spurned NHL teams last spring for an opportunity to compete for a national title in his senior season.

The Hobey Baker finalist projects as a highly-skilled NHL winger that could carve out a role in an NHL team’s top nine. The biggest knock on him is his size, as Kawaguchi stands at just 5’9 and 181 lbs, which will cause teams to be wary of his ability to translate his game to the NHL. Kawaguchi has been an excellent playmaker at UND, racking up 0.91 assists-per-game in his last two seasons. Playmaking is a skill that is heavily based on hockey-IQ, and Kawaguchi should have no problem translating that over to the NHL.

Kawaguchi should draw a lot of interest on the open market, and the Canucks can offer something other teams can’t: A chance to come home.

Should Kawaguchi decide to sign with the Canucks, the team can offer him a chance to play right away as they likely won’t be in a playoff race down the season’s home stretch. Included with the likeliness of the Canucks selling at the trade deadline, opening up roster spots for the likes of possibly Kawaguchi and the organization’s prospects. Like my colleague, Brayden Ursel, said in his article last week: it’s time to let the kids play. 

https://twitter.com/TheNCHC/status/1213645334569603072?s=20

Marc McLaughlin – C, Boston College, Junior

Though not as offensively gifted as Kawaguchi, the two-way center broke out offensively for Boston College this season, racking up 10 goals and 24 points in 24 games. Marc McLaughlin projects as a strong defensive bottom-six center in the NHL, who doesn’t play a flashy game, but the skill-set he provides is valuable to NHL teams. McLaughlin is the type of player NHL coaches and GMs dream about having in their bottom six. The high character two-way stud does many things that don’t make the stat sheet but don’t go unnoticed.

McLaughlin’s high character was awarded when he was the Curt Hammer Award recipient as the player who distinguishes himself both on and off the ice by demonstrating outstanding performance skills, leadership, pride, and determination—and then being named captain of the Boston College Eagles for 2020-21 season. On the ice, McLaughlin’s play took off this season as he exploded offensively, going from a 0.32 points-per-game to a 1.0 point-per-game from his sophomore to junior seasons at Boston College, leaving the window open to keep improving as an offensive player.

McLaughlin is a swiss-army type player that would be an excellent fit in the Canucks bottom six and could grow into the long-awaited third-line center role that the Canucks have struggled to fill in years.