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Grading the Canucks offseason (So far)

By Joshua Rey |
MONTREAL, QUEBEC - JULY 08: (L-R) Bruce Boudreau and Patrik Allvin of the Vancouver Canucks attend the 2022 NHL Draft at the Bell Centre on July 08, 2022 in Montreal, Quebec. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QUEBEC - JULY 08: (L-R) Bruce Boudreau and Patrik Allvin of the Vancouver Canucks attend the 2022 NHL Draft at the Bell Centre on July 08, 2022 in Montreal, Quebec. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
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So, we are in the middle of July and the Vancouver Canucks‘ offseason is well underway. As the 2021-22 NHL season began, there was much speculation by fans and media that there would be changes to the Canucks roster this summer.

Let’s go over the moves the Canucks made this offseason (so far) and give them letter grades and at the end, we’ll give them an overall grade.

The draft: B

The Canucks had a first-round pick for the first time in three years and I think they made a good choice with it.

Jonathan Lekkerimaki was taken by the Canucks at 15 and I really like this pick. Scouts have said that Lekkerimaki might have the best shot in the 2022 draft. Scoring goals is the thing he does best. He scores goals with the wrist shot, slap shot, backhander and any type of shot you could think of.

Lekkerimaki will head back to Sweden next season. The concerns with him are his size and skating. Hopefully, he can bulk up some time in the future.

The Canucks took Elias Pettersson in the third round. No, not that one. This one is a defenceman and like Lekkerimaki, idolizes the elder Pettersson. There were a lot of memes and jokes by hockey fans and media on social media when the Canucks drafted Pettersson.

All jokes aside, there is lots to like about the younger Pettersson. He is a good skater and passer and is also physical and smart in his own end.

Other players the Canucks drafted are centre Damion Gardner, goaltender Ty Young, defenceman Jackson Dorrington and defenceman Kirill Kudryavtsev.

Young’s numbers have not been great but there is still a lot of room for growth in this game. Gardner is a name to watch. He put up 83 points in 30 games with Warroad High School last season. It looked like he was going to play with the BCHL’s Chilliwack Chiefs next season, but he revealed in an interview with Sportsnet 650 on July 8 that he would be going to the USHL next season.

At 6’4″, Gardner brings size and is a good skater with a decent shot. He has the potential to be a late-bloomer.

Apr 21, 2022; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Boston Bruins center Curtis Lazar (20) skates with the puck against the Pittsburgh Penguins during the third period at PPG Paints Arena. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 21, 2022; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Boston Bruins center Curtis Lazar (20) skates with the puck against the Pittsburgh Penguins during the third period at PPG Paints Arena. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports /

Free agency: C

With not much cap space, it did not look like the Canucks were going to be active in free agency. But it turns out, the opposite happened.

Rutherford spoke about wanting more “sandpaper” on the team on the DFO Rundown podcast back in June. The two players they signed definitely brought sandpaper.

Curtis Lazar was a player I wanted the Canucks to sign and they got him. The Salmon Arm native is a very good defensive centre/right-winger and also does well on the penalty kill. He was a player the Canucks needed, especially with the fact that he is right-handed. Lazar seems like a good fit on the bottom six, especially with a one million dollar cap hit for three years.

Ilya Mikheyev was the biggest Canucks signing of the day. He brings sandpaper and speed. Mikheyev also is good in his own end and on the PK and isn’t afraid to get physical. He is coming off a career-high season which included 21 goals.

As much as I like Mikheyev, the contract raises some eyebrows. At four years and 4.75 million dollars a season, the Canucks are gambling here. Is his 21-goal, 32-point season a sign of the start of something bigger or is it just a mirage? If it’s the latter, the Canucks could have another anchor contract on their hands. Here’s hoping that isn’t the case.

The Canucks also made the Andrei Kuzmenko signing official on the first day of free agency. After beating out numerous teams in signing him, Vancouver got him in June. Kuzmenko is an excellent skater and playmaker but it looks like he’s a boom or bust player. On a one-year deal, he gets to prove that he belongs with the Canucks and in the NHL next season.

There were also some depth signings the Canucks made. Those players signed were left winger Dakota Joshua, defenceman Wyatt Kalinuk, goaltender Collin Delia and defenceman Christian Wolanin.

These players are expected to be in Abbotsford. However, Joshua seems the most likely to make the NHL roster next season. He is a physical player standing at 6’3″ and can provide a bit of offence. Allvin spoke about Joshua a lot during his media availability on the first day of free agency.

The biggest reason why I’m giving free agency a C grade for the Canucks (other than Mikheyev’s contract) is they didn’t address the defence. A lot of right-handed defencemen signed for cheap cap hits including Ilya Lyubushkin, Colin Miller and Troy Stecher.

It looks like the Canucks will have to fix the defence by trade…

Trades: I (For now)

Spoiler alert: The Canucks did not make any trades. Well, not yet anyway. There were lots of trade rumours surrounding the team for months, particularly J.T. Miller. Allvin and company are most definitely not done this offseason and could make trades in the coming weeks or months.

MONTREAL, QUEBEC – JULY 08: General manger Ron Francis of the Seattle Kraken and president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford of the Vancouver Canucks speak on the draft floor prior to the start of Round Two of the 2022 Upper Deck NHL Draft at Bell Centre on July 08, 2022 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QUEBEC – JULY 08: General manger Ron Francis of the Seattle Kraken and president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford of the Vancouver Canucks speak on the draft floor prior to the start of Round Two of the 2022 Upper Deck NHL Draft at Bell Centre on July 08, 2022 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /

Overall offseason grade: C

It’s hard not to get underwhelmed with the Canucks offseason so far. Allvin and Rutherford talked about creating cap space and improving the team but haven’t done a whole lot.

Yes, the Canucks are a better team with Mikheyev and Lazar and they had a good draft. But the defence is still the same and it was not good at all last season. They cannot go with the same defence heading into next season.

But as said above, it doesn’t seem like they’ll do that. Rutherford was asked about the fans being impatient on a Miller trade Friday’s edition of Donnie and Dhali.

“Well, I’ll ask you what are they impatient about?” said Rutherford. “Our best forward, we still have in our lineup, what’s the impatience for?”

It looks like the Canucks are still waiting for the right offer for Miller and other players. Again, they can’t make a trade just because they have to. They need to be smart with it and that’s the right approach.

It’s hard not to blame fans for being impatience and underwhelmed. But as I Tweeted out on Friday, I think Canucks fans are also having PTSD from the old regime and fear Miller will walk away for nothing or get signed to a big contract that will look bad in a few years.

However, the Canucks path to contention won’t happen in just one offseason. It’s going to take time to clean up the previous regime’s messes.

Rutherford even said in the Donnie and Dhali interview that it could take two to three years to turn things around.

So I think the Canucks have improved the forward core and they have a decent shot at the playoffs next year. But the defence still scares me and that could prevent them from making the playoffs. Thatcher Demko and Spencer Martin are going to have their work cut out for them if the same defensive core returns.

I’ll admit I am underwhelmed by the Canucks moves so far which is why they get a C. But at the same time, I’m patient.

Next. Canucks re-sign Phil Di Giuseppe to league minimum deal. dark

What grade would you give the Canucks offseason so far? Let us know in the comments below, in the Facebook comments or on Twitter.

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