We know that Vancover Canucks general manager Patrik Allvin is a fan of trades well before the deadline. Look no further back than last season, when they acquired Nikita Zadorov at the end of November.
As such, it comes as no surprise that there has already been a lot of speculation connecting the Canucks to a whole host of potential trades. And as with the Zadorov move, it seems like Allvin and company are again interested in making a significant addition.
As per Noah Strang of Daily Hive, the Canucks apparently reached out to the New York Rangers about Chris Kreider. The information came courtesy of CHEK’s Rick Dhaliwal, during Thursday's edition of Donnie & Dhali.
Don't get too carried away
Not that Canucks fans should get too excited about being linked to Kreider. As Dhaliwal said: "Someone told me the Canucks called the Rangers about Chris Kreider. But my guess is Vancouver is probably on Kreider's no-trade list. He's got a healthy one with -- I think -- 15 teams. The Rangers sent out feelers that Kreider and (Jacob) Trouba were available, so every team called, including the Canucks."
Now to be clear, we entirely appreciate why the Canucks would reach out about someone of the calibre of Kreider, who offers the enticing combination of size and speed. He might not be off to the best of starts in 2024-25, but the past three seasons have seen him produce the three highest points total of his 12+ years in the NHL.
However, even taking away the no-trade list scenario, it was always going to be tough for Allvin to get anywhere with acquiring Kreider. His annual cap hit of $6.5 million for the remainder of this campaign and another two seasons, is tough to justify for someone who is approaching 34 years of age,.
There's also the competition of other teams looking to acquire Kreider, which would drive up the asking price. The last thing the Cancucks want to do is compromise themselves too much, particularly when they have other areas of need, specifically on the blue line.
At the end of the day, this reported call to the Rangers was more about performing your due diligence as opposed to a realistic chance of obtaining Kreider. Be assured though that Allvin is aggressively working the phones, looking to complete a trade which will improve the Canucks and their position as genuine contenders come playoff time.