The waiting game between the Vancouver Canucks and top defence prospect Tom Willander is looking like it will only drag out longer.
Canucks president Jim Rutherford, in typical unfiltered fashion, has put the onus on Willander and his camp in his latest comments on the situation at hand.
"At the end of the day, he's going to have a decision to make at some point," Rutherford said of Willander. "Whether he comes to camp and plays, turns pro and makes a few million dollars over the next couple of years, and burns year one or two years of free agency towards being unrestricted, or goes back to college and starts two years from now.
"He's playing and he's getting his development time, which is good, but at some point, Tom and his family are going to have to make a decision on some of those things."
Willander, 20, can become an unrestricted free agent and leave the Canucks behind entirely when his NHL signing rights expire on Aug. 15, 2027. The Canucks clearly want Willander to sign his entry-level contract and turn pro, but, for the limited number of quirks you can reasonably have in an ELC, negotiations remain at a stalemate.
With Rick Tocchet out the door and Brock Boeser and Quinn Hughes to potentially soon follow, things are not looking too sunny in Vancouver these days.