4 Canucks players who shouldn’t return next season

Elias Lindholm needs to be nothing more than a rental

I haven’t been shy in my criticism of Elias Lindholm, from wanting to see Allvin move him at the trade deadline to constantly talking about the long wait for the former Selke contender to give fans something even remotely close to what he played like while in Calgary. 

Before his recent injury, Lindholm scored in a 4-2 win over his former team, and he logged an assist in the 4-1 win over the Montreal Canadiens. Two points in two games is great, but nine points and five goals in 22 contests since the trade in January is not. And it is unfortunate that Lindholm went down with a day-to-day injury right when it seemed like he was starting to produce.  

It’s almost like this trade was never meant to work out for Vancouver, but they will luckily be off the hook following the season, and the 29-year-old could revive his game somewhere else. Teams looking for a veteran who can help them win faceoffs would be interested in Lindholm, and also those who could use help on special teams. 

Lindholm has been in Vancouver for over two months, and you can still hardly argue he’s made the team any better. If the opposite were true, perhaps Allvin would try to make him more than a rental, but as of now, it shouldn’t happen.