Former Canucks who are still UFAs

In the NHL’s annual game of musical chairs — better known as free agency — the music is winding down and a handful of players are still standing. A number of those stragglers are former Vancouver Canucks looking for new homes.

In this week’s edition of Bored Hockey Fans Trying to Entertain Themselves, we’ll look at some of these free agents, why they still haven’t signed, and what their careers might look like from here on out.

#6 — Braden Holtby

Although he wasn’t the best goalie the Canucks have ever had, Braden Holtby spent many years as one of the most trusted netminders in the league during his time with the Washington Capitals. That trust is proudly displayed in his trophy case in the form of a Vezina Trophy, a Jennings Trophy and Stanley Cup ring. He was also named a First-Team All-Star in 2016 and a Second-Team All-Star in 2017.

Needless to say, Holtby is experienced and he knows what it takes to succeed. He was much more successful this past season with the Dallas Stars than he was with the Canucks. Over 24 games, he maintained a .913 save percentage and a 2.78 goals against average — a huge bounce back from what he achieved the previous year.

So, why has Holtby not signed a contract yet? The answer is simple: he’s hurt. A lower-body injury suffered in March forced him to miss the last bit of the season. Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic recently reported that he’s likely to miss the entire season and retirement is a possibility.

It’s a shame that Holtby is not ready to play, as the Vegas Golden Knights are in desperate need of a solid goaltender with the news that Robin Lehner is expected to miss the entire season. Golden Knights fans saw first-hand how effective Holtby can be when they faced him in the 2018 Stanley Cup Final. Of course, after that Vegas probably wouldn’t take him even if the only other option was strapping a shooter tutor to the net. But if they did pick him up, it would make for a great story.

#5 — Alex Chiasson

It’s clear why Braden Holtby hasn’t signed a contract, but it’s less clear why fellow former Capital, Star and Canuck Alex Chiasson has yet to put pen to paper.

Cursed to sign never-ending PTOs, Chiasson worked his butt off for the Canucks this year and was rewarded with 13 goals in 67 games. Although he’s not the guy that scores every night, he contributes a goal here and there and is responsible at both ends of the ice. He’s good on the powerplay and provides veteran leadership as well as a winning pedigree.

Low-dollar, high-value bottom-six veterans like Chiasson are necessary for any successful team — look at what Darren Helm and Andrew Cogliano just did for the Stanley Cup winning Colorado Avalanche.

Unfortunately, it seems that the Canucks no longer have a place in the lineup for Chiasson’s services. But that doesn’t mean he has no value. Chiasson would be a great addition to any squad in the league that has room for a bottom-six forward — a gap that the Canucks have already filled. On a Cup-contending team, he would eat minutes as a responsible bottom-six forward. On a lottery-contending team, he would provide leadership from the middle six.

#4 — Jonathan Dahlen

The Canucks’ return on the Alex Burrows trade, Jonathan Dahlen, had a relatively successful rookie season for the San Jose Sharks this year. The Canucks dealt Dahlen to the Sharks in 2019 for Linus Karlsson, who became the ninth-leading scorer in the SHL this year.

Dahlen posted 12 goals and 22 points in 61 games for the Sharks this season, averaging 13:48 of ice time per contest. His defensive game needs work, but as he gains experience at the NHL level, he will get better.

The Sharks chose not to extend Dahlen a qualifying offer, so he became a UFA this summer. He would be a fairly risk-free pickup for any team, as he would likely sign a low-dollar, low-term, two-way deal. He could really break out this season and give a team a valuable player at a low cost. If he didn’t perform well, he could play out the season in the minors and not cost the team much at all.

#3 — Travis Green

Alright, he’s not exactly a UFA, but Travis Green is a free agent in the coaching market, so we’ll include him on this list.

Aside from the 2021-22 season, Green had a successful run as the head coach of the Canucks. He orchestrated their playoff run in the 2020 bubble and he earned a two-year contract extension the year after that. It’s unfortunate that things ended poorly for him in Vancouver, but most see his last season as an anomaly to an otherwise solid coaching resume.

Unfortunately for Green, the coaching market was flooded with qualified individuals this year and all the jobs were snatched up quickly. He spoke to a number of teams in the off-season, including the Dallas Stars. But for whatever reason, he didn’t end up with a job.

Green hasn’t explicitly released his plans for this off-season, but he will likely take a break, re-group, and attempt to secure another coaching job next season.

#2 — Loui Eriksson, Jay Beagle and Antoine Roussel

Yes, these are three separate players, but they have been lumped into the same category for some time now. They’ll likely face similar fates this year, so we’ll keep them in the same category for the purposes of this article.

The $12 million that the Canucks spent on Loui Eriksson, Jay Beagle and Antoine Roussel this year bought the Arizona Coyotes 29 points. The Coyotes needed players to fill out their roster so they traded Oliver Ekman-Larsson (who also has a massive contract) and Conor Garland for them. These three guys did exactly that — and nothing else.

Eriksson is 37 years old, Beagle is 36, and Roussel is 32. They’re not exactly promising young rookies anymore, and they haven’t contributed anything significant to their teams in a number of years. Additionally, Beagle and Roussel have both missed significant portions of the last few seasons due to injuries. It’s likely that all three players retire from professional hockey this year. However, another option for them is Europe.