Canucks re-sign Brandon Sutter to a one-year contract

Brandon Sutter is coming back to the Vancouver Canucks.

On Wednesday morning, the team announced that they had re-signed the 32-year-old centre to a one-year contract worth $1.125 million.

Sutter has spent the last six seasons with the Canucks after being acquired from the Pittsburgh Penguins in July 2015. The Canucks also received a conditional 2016 third round pick in the deal, which was eventually used to select Will Lockwood. After the trade, General manager Jim Benning described Sutter as a  “foundational piece”.

In return, the Penguins received Nick Bonino, Adam Clendening and a 2016 second round pick.

One month after the acquistion, Sutter was signed to a five-year extension with an AAV of $4.375 million, which kicked in for the 2016-17 season.

In his six seasons with the Canucks, Sutter played 275 games, while notching 54 goals and 50 assists for a total of 104 points. Sutter has dealt with numerous injuries with the Canucks, and ended up missing a total 178 games during his first six seasons in Vancouver. His healthiest and most productive season came in 2016-27, where he scored 17 goals and 17 assists. He was also one game short of playing the full 82-game season.

At first, it looked like Sutter wouldn’t be coming back to the Canucks for the 2021-22 season.

On July 13th, insider Elliotte Friedman spoke on Sportsnet 650, sharing that he didn’t think management would be able to find a fit for the centre.

Late Tuesday night, Friedman indicated that conversations had changed regarding Sutter’s return. Sportsnet’s Dan Murphy followed up on the news, reporting that the Canucks were indeed circling back on Sutter, less than 12 hours before free agency was officially set to kick off.

Sutter’s officially re-signing was first reported by TSN insider Bob McKenzie, with Thomas Drance of The Athletic right behind him with the financial details.

With Jason Dickinson expected to handle the third-line centre duties, Sutter will now slot into the fourth line, replacing former veteran centre Jay Beagle, who was part of the blockbuster draft day deal with the Arizona Coyotes. In addition to his strong faceoff numbers and veteran penalty kill capabilities, Sutter also brings leadership qualities to the locker room, and should be a solid role model for some of the younger players. He has worn the “A” on his jersey since 2016-17.

Sutter also hasn’t been shy in expressing his desire to stay in Vancouver.

“I want to be here and this is where I want to stay,” he told The Province back in February.

Sutter has faced quite a bit of criticism over the past few years, especially with his pricey AAV.  He has been known to struggle with completing crisp passes, but can score goals on the rush and effectively shutdown opponents, in addition to his penalty killing and faceoffs.

Given all of these contributions, a one-year deal makes sense for the Canucks.

What are your thoughts on Sutter’s latest deal with the Canucks? Let us know in the comments!