The Vancouver Canucks are interested in Minnesota Wild forward Brandon Duhaime, according to NHL insider Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff.
Duhaime, a 26-year-old right-winger, has recorded four goals, six points and 64 penalty minutes through 58 games this season. He’s signed to the end of the season at a $1.1 million cap hit. He’s from Florida but played parts of two seasons in the BCHL with the West Kelowna Warriors and the Merritt Centennials.
Mentioned this on today's DFO Rundown pod, but worth a tweet: #Canucks have been keeping close tabs on #mnwild Brandon Duhaime.
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) February 26, 2024
It's no lock Duhaime is moved with MIN in playoff chase, but an intriguing piece on our Trade Targets board.
Full pod here: https://t.co/SAovvtfoRm
Although the 6-foot-2, 200-pound forward doesn’t put the puck in the net very often, he kills lots of penalties and records lots of fights. He brings great energy to the Wild’s bottom six — something he’d likely do for the Canucks.
The most recent of Duhaime’s seven fights this year came on Saturday against Will Borgen of the Seattle Kraken. Each guy delivered a few blows before they both tumbled to the ice. Previous to that fight, Duhaime destroyed former Canuck Will Lockwood in response to what he thought was an unfair trip.
Where would Duhaime fit in the Canucks’ lineup?
While the majority of the Canucks’ lineup is set, the last couple of spots have been a revolving door. Nils Åman, Linus Karlsson, Phil Di Giuseppe, and, most recently, Arshdeep Bains have all taken turns in that spot. What do those guys all have in common? None of them fight very often, if at all. Duhaime would join that rotation, especially in games where physical participation is anticipated.
If traded to the Canucks, Duhaime would also be a reliable penalty-killing option. He typically plays on the Wild’s second PK unit and has one short-handed goal this season.
A significant critique of the first-place Canucks is their lack of toughness. They have some big defensemen, but they don’t have many guys that drop the gloves more than a couple of times a season. Heading into the playoffs, a bona fide tough guy could prove invaluable.
What would Duhaime cost the Canucks?
The Canucks are short on draft capital. Their first selection in the 2024 draft will be in the third round. While any price is justified by winning the Stanley Cup, they might prefer to ship off a low-level prospect or a draft pick in a later year.
It’s an off-year for the Wild, who currently sit four points out of a wildcard spot. Seravalli reported that if the Wild decide to make a push for the playoffs, they’ll likely keep Duhaime. If they do decide to sell at the deadline, however, it does them no good to keep a depth player on an expiring contract. For this reason, they should be willing to sell at a low cost — unless, of course, there’s interest from multiple teams.