The life of a professional athlete can often be unpredictable, whether it be due to circumstances within their control or not (or both). Take the case of Nils Höglander.
Last season proved to be a breakout campaign for Höglander, as he finally showed the Canucks what he was truly capable of. He set a whole host of personal single-season bests, including 24 goals, 36 total points, a 20.0 shooting percentage, +23 rating and 100 blocks.
Clearly Canucks general manager Patrik Allvin liked what he saw, as he signed the Sweden native to a three-year, $9 million contract extension just ahead of the 2024-25 campaign. The deal is set to kick in next season, after the conclusion of his current two-year, $2.2 million deal.
Off to a flying start in 2024-25, but then ...
The good vibes continued into the beginning of this season, as Höglander earned himself playing time in the Canucks' top six. In the first seven games he proved to be an excellent asset, averaging 14:56 of ice time and, among other things, producing two goals and one assist.
Then something happened in the Canucks' eighth game against the Carolina Hurricanes, which changed the course of Höglander's season. As per Thomas Drance and Harman Dayal of The Athletic (subscription required), he was lackadaisical on the backcheck during the Hurricanes' second goal.
As a result, the 23-year-old was demoted to the fourth line as punishment, and he hasn't been able to recover ever since. He has been removed from the second power play unit, lost his away offensively, and is making more defensive mistakes than anyone wants to see.
As a result of all this -- or maybe because of -- Höglander has only averaged 11:46 of ice time in his past seven games. This included a season-low 9:23 in the Canucks' most reason contest versus the Calgary Flames, leading to the belief that he is well and truly in coach Rick Tocchet's doghouse.
So is a trade really a possibility?
As such, this has led to speculation that the 2019 second round draft pick could become a useful trade chip for the Canucks. Drance and Dayal note he could help the team in their quest for blue line help, while Cam Lewis of Oilers Nation believes the forward could provide a boost in Edmonton.
All we will say, is that it's too soon to be considering trading Höglander. Yes he's having a tough time of it at the moment, but this is still the same player who excelled last season and looked so good at the beginning of this one.
The left-shot winger still has what it takes to fulfill his potential as a long-term middle-six option in Vancouver. At the same time, he does have plenty to work on, particularly the aforementioned reference to making far too many mistakes, many of which are avoidable.
Höglander has a good work ethic and plenty of energy, both of which he needs to use to force his way out of Tocchet's doghouse (if indeed that is the situation). It's too soon to give up on him, but if his poor play continues for any extended period of time, this will only increase the speculation that he could be moved sometime prior to this season's trade deadline on Mar. 7.