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Canucks Roundtable: Predicting next year’s opening night roster

By Brayden Ursel

EDMONTON, ALBERTA - SEPTEMBER 03: The Vancouver Canucks stand for the national anthem prior to Game Six of the Western Conference Second Round against the Vegas Golden Knights during the 2020 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Rogers Place on September 03, 2020 in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
EDMONTON, ALBERTA - SEPTEMBER 03: The Vancouver Canucks stand for the national anthem prior to Game Six of the Western Conference Second Round against the Vegas Golden Knights during the 2020 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Rogers Place on September 03, 2020 in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /
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Jimmy Vesey of the Vancouver Canucks. (Photo by Rich Lam/Getty Images)
Jimmy Vesey of the Vancouver Canucks. (Photo by Rich Lam/Getty Images) /

Tanjot Purewal – Contributor

It’s difficult to imagine the Canucks lineup looking a lot different or better come opening night next season. The team will be working under some cap constraints with Pettersson and Hughes needing contract extensions. And when you factor in the already limited wiggle room they have to work with, there aren’t many solutions to improving the team.

The Canucks must look for in-house solutions by freeing the kids. It is time to let Vasili Podkolzin, Kole Lind, and Juolevi off the leash and let them play. The Canucks best chance to improve next season is having prospects on entry-level contracts contributing.

In my very early opening night prediction for next season, I have both Podkolzin and Lind being in the top nine as Vancouver opens the 2021-’22 season. Lind has done everything in the AHL to prove he deserves a shot with the Canucks, and he’s going to get it. As for Podkolzin, the prized prospect comes to the organization oozing with limitless potential.

As for the rest of the lineup, the elephant in the room is the contract extensions of Pettersson and Hughes. Due to the Canucks cap problems, both will likely be signing bridge deals. I have both of them coming into camp with three-year extensions. Pettersson with an $8 million annual average hit and Hughes with a $6.75 million annual value.

The blueline is a huge question mark, and Edler is a Canuck-lifer, so it only makes sense to bring him back on a one-year extension at $2.75, maybe $3 million. That won’t be enough though, after scouring the free-agent market, Jon Merill makes a tonne of sense as a low-risk bottom pairing addition.

The roster does not look a lot different on paper, but the added punch of Lind and Podkolzin could give the team some youthful exuberance to take the next step.

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