The Vancouver Canucks have won three games in a row and are back in a playoff spot. That’s good news but it doesn’t change some of the big-picture dilemmas facing the team.
Vancouver expected to contend for the Stanley Cup this season and that doesn’t seem like a realistic aspiration right now. The Canucks are at a critical fork in the road. They have massive, era-defining decisions to make over the next six months and the stakes are enormous given the importance of keeping Quinn Hughes in Vancouver beyond his current contract, which has two years remaining after this season.
Inspired by our colleagues on the Rangers’ beat, The Athletic spoke to three NHL team executives —two current and one former — to get their thoughts on the hot-button topics in Vancouver. We granted the two active executives anonymity to allow them to speak freely about Vancouver.
How should the Canucks handle Miller and Pettersson’s futures?
Everyone we spoke to acknowledged that they don’t have complete information on the internal dynamics of J.T. Miller and Elais Pettersson’s respective personalities, characters or their rift. Those factors are important to consider, they said.
From a pure on-ice standpoint, however, the execs agreed that it’d be in the Canucks’ best interests to move on from Miller before next season, even if his trade value isn’t in the best position.
Exec 1: “Pettersson is younger, has more of a prime left. He’s not as good of a playoff performer, there’s some (Mitch) Marner in him there. But I can find (playoff performers like) the (Blake) Colemans, the (Ryan) McDonaghs to surround these elite players with and shield him from that. If Miller and him were the same age it’d be different, but I would (keep) Pettersson and the higher-end potential.”
Exec 2: “The first thing I’d do is loop in Quinn Hughes, lay out some options and thoughts with him (and get his input).
“I don’t think they’re a real Cup contender this year. If they were, I would have considered keeping Miller and moving Pettersson, but I don’t think they are (so) I’d move Miller and build this team around Pettersson and Hughes.
“I’d move on from Boeser and retool on the fly. You have most of the pieces (to be a good team) and you can go big-game hunting this summer.”
Steve Werier, former Florida Panthers assistant general manager: “My first thought is not about those two players, it’s about the rest of the players in the room. Hockey careers are really short. It’s not really fair to those other guys in the room to punt a full season of their pro careers over something that’s controllable. Management has a fiduciary responsibility to put those guys in the best position possible to succeed.
“Given Miller’s age, the duration of his contract (five years beyond this season) and the significance of his cap hit, if you’re running the Canucks, you have to be mindful that No. 1, sometimes cap space is the best asset if you know how to use it well.
“Pettersson’s a different creature. It’s not every day that a 26-year-old point-per-game all-around player … (becomes available). There’s probably going to be 30-odd bidders for him. You have to wonder if both players need a fresh start before things continue to pile on.”
Can the Canucks reset quickly enough to entice Hughes to stay long-term?
Every decision management makes has to be done with Hughes’ future in mind. Vancouver’s captain has two years remaining after this season at a $7.85 million cap hit. He’ll be eligible to sign a new contract extension in the summer of 2026.
Regardless of what the Canucks do with their core, it’s a non-negotiable to turn the organization around quickly to give them the best possible chance of re-signing Hughes long-term. The execs we spoke to all agreed there’s a path for Vancouver to right the ship in short order. It won’t be easy — it’ll require shrewd, creative maneuvering — but it is possible in their eyes, in large part because of the cap space and assets they could have to play with this summer if they sell pieces like Miller and Boeser.
Exec 1: “Yes, you can (positively) affect the team. Can you make them a top-tier Stanley Cup contender? I don’t know. But in terms of staying competitive and keeping Quinn, you can do enough with the Miller trade. You (might) get a K’Andre Miller type and another (quality) guy out of New York. You’re not going to get the maximum value because teams know they have to get rid of one.
“If you don’t get the right deal, you can hold off and make the deal in the summer. I would not make the deal for pennies on the dollar. I think you could get two guys who in the aggregate could make up for Miller.”
Exec 2: “You’re taking one player off your team potentially in Miller but you’re not tearing the whole thing down. And with Miller, you’re getting someone back, you’re not purely getting futures. You’re realistically finding a team that has some really good young pieces and that’s who you’re swapping Miller for. I think you can absolutely make that work. The other asset they’ll have is the opportunity to spend cap space.”
Werier: “With Miller, I think the flexibility and optionality of $8 million of cap space over the next 5-6 years is a tremendous asset to a club that will have significant roster needs to address. I think the focus on Miller should not be, ‘Did we get a player back who’s as good as Miller?’ because that’s not going to happen.
“The focus should be, ‘Have we created maximum (cap) flexibility to (make other moves) by making this deal?’ as opposed to looking at the direct assets that come back. I think you need to be doing second-order thinking.”
Should the Canucks re-sign or trade Boeser?
Boeser has developed into a high-end top-six scorer and would be tough to move on from, especially given the club’s scoring issues. But he’s a pending UFA at the end of this season and AFP Analytics projects that his next contract could be in the seven-year, $8.75 million AAV neighborhood.
Exec 2: “Boeser’s a good player and they like him, but I think he’s a dime a dozen top-six goal-scoring winger. I wouldn’t pay him (a big contract) because I think you can replace him for much less than whatever he gets paid. If he’s willing to take a very team-friendly deal it’s different, but if he’s looking to be paid like a 40-goal scorer? Not for me.”
Werier: “Anytime you’re talking about a long-term deal for a player who makes a significant salary, it’s not in a vacuum. You’ve got to look at the opportunity cost. You’ve got to look around the league and look at all the various players who might become reasonably available (over the next several months) that you may want to build your roster around (with the cap space that you might commit to a player like Boeser).
“As we’ve seen in recent days, that includes guys like Mikko Rantanen. If you’re looking at the free agent market and you’re talking to teams to know what’s available in trades, is Boeser that player where they think we need him? And if so, is he better than all the other options out there (this offseason) for say $7-8 million for the next six or seven years? That’s a big commitment and it’s a very tough decision when you’re potentially moving on from other core players.”
Exec 1: “He doesn’t seem like a (long-term) fit for them. I would explore the (trade) market. I would think that Boeser would command quite a bit (of a trade haul) from a contender.”
Kevin Lankinen has been the Canucks’ second-best player but his future is uncertain. (Steph Chambers / Getty Images)
How should Canucks manage their future in net?
The Canucks have high-stakes decisions to make in goal beyond this season.
Kevin Lankinen is a pending free agent, and the club will have to decide whether or not they are ready to make a significant contract investment in him. Meanwhile, Thatcher Demko only has one year remaining after this season at a $5 million cap hit. He has the talent to play at a Vezina-calibre level, but he’s also been plagued by major injury concerns.
Exec 1: “I don’t have the medical records (on Demko), that would make my life easier. There’d probably be 28-29 teams lined up to offer you for Demko if you made him available.
“I would try to sign Lankinen, I just wouldn’t do (a big contract). If you’re going to do long-term contracts with goalies, I think there’s only 5-8 that you do it with. I would not pay for a one-year goalie (like Lankinen) unless he had shown things in the past.
“There’s a Lankinen or two every single year. Vegas couldn’t wait to get rid of (Logan Thompson). You can always find a goalie.”
Exec 2: “I am keeping Demko and (finding the next Lankinen). Goaltending is important but it’s really difficult to ascertain who’s going to perform well the next year.
“If there’s a very team-friendly deal where he says, ‘I’m in a good situation here, I can win here, I like the goalie coach, I like the team and so I’m willing to take a discount’ then that’s a different story. But how many times have you seen a goalie come out of nowhere, have a good year, get paid and then be on waivers like two years later?”
Werier: “Other than Quinn Hughes, Lankinen is arguably the MVP of this team this year. Looking at the market, obviously guys like MacKenzie Blackwood (five years, $5.25 million AAV) and a few others who’ve signed recently are within the universe of (contract) comparables.
“It’s a bind for Vancouver because Demko’s been an all-world talent and you’d like to fit both in. As management, when you make a small bet on a guy like Lankinen and he hits it out of the park, you usually want to reward those guys and keep them around.”
Werier added that he believes the Canucks should make a decisive decision to either re-sign or trade Lankinen before the March 7 deadline. He argued that the club can’t afford to risk losing him for nothing in the summer.
“Is the goal to win a Stanley Cup or is the goal to come in 8th instead of 9th (in the Conference)?” Werier said. “If the Canucks are honest with themselves, it’s not inconceivable that the right move may be to shop one of those goalies, perhaps the expiring one (Lankinen), for what might be a significant return. But if you can lock him up to a reasonable cap hit prior to the deadline, that’s maybe an even more optimal move.”
How much responsibility does management bear for the team’s underwhelming, dysfunctional season?
Exec 2: “They deserve a good amount of the blame.
“(In terms of roster construction), up front they’re OK, but on D they’re really in bad shape. They don’t know how to evaluate defencemen — Tyler Myers, Vincent Desharnais, Derek Forbort, Noah Juulsen — the mandate is big D, whether or not they can play is another story.”
Exec 1: “100 percent of the responsibility (for the dysfunction). When was the last time you heard of a locker room situation like the one Pettersson and Miller have had?
“If I were in charge, (the Pettersson/Miller feud) would have ended one minute after it started and one of them would have been gone. The most important thing is knowing your team, knowing your players.
“I’ve actually been part of a deal like that. We moved a player who had an internal problem with one of our high-end players and he was gone (right away) and no one ever knew about it. The problem happened and the player was gone two days later. That’s how you handle it.”
Is Rick Tocchet the right coach for the Canucks long-term?
We asked the execs for their opinion on Tocchet, while referencing the debate in this market about how much responsibility he bears for the Canucks’ offensive struggles this season. The execs said it’s difficult to assess a coach’s impact from the outside, but a couple provided some insight nonetheless.
Werier: “I don’t think it’s a matter of whether he is a good coach or not, it’s who’s the right coach for this player group and compatible with this management group?
“Management needs a clear vision of what they’re trying to build, how they want to play. They need to put together a roster that fits that and then you can evaluate the coach. You need everybody on the same page and I don’t know if they are or aren’t in Vancouver.”
Exec 2: “I’ve heard really good things about Tocchet but like all coaches, you have a shelf life.
“Tocchet, you could be complimentary of until this drama emerged. Once this drama between Miller and Pettersson emerged, that is where someone like Tocchet, you look at him as a leadership person and motivator. He’s not here for systems, he’s there for identity and motivation and stuff. Someone else coming in won’t necessarily command respect in the room (though).”
(Top photo of Elias Pettersson, J.T. Miller and Brock Boeser: Jeff Vinnick / NHLI via Getty Images)
