The chatter around the Vancouver Canucks has officially shifted from playoff positioning to asset management. According to NHL insider Elliotte Friedman, the Canucks have notified the league that they are willing to entertain trade offers for a specific tier of veteran players.
If you are panic-refreshing your feed, take a breath: Quinn Hughes is not going anywhere. Friedman made it clear that the captain and blueliner Filip Hronek are off-limits. However, the “For Sale” sign is up for pending UFAs and veterans with short-term term left. This list includes heavy hitters like Evander Kane, depth grinders like Teddy Blueger and David Kampf, and defensemen Tyler Myers and Derek Forbort.
This immediately signals a “retool on the fly” rather than a scorching-earth rebuild. The management clearly believes the core is intact, but the supporting cast needs a financial and structural overhaul.
Why Trading Kiefer Sherwood Is The Smartest Play
As an analyst looking at this roster, the name that jumps off the page isn’t the biggest star—it’s Kiefer Sherwood.
While Evander Kane brings name recognition, Sherwood brings pure value. He is currently playing on an affordable $1.5 million cap hit and is fresh off a career-best 40-point season in 2024-25. With 12 goals and 16 points in just 23 games this season, he is essentially found money for a contending team looking for cheap scoring depth.
Selling high on Sherwood right now is the kind of shrewd asset management successful franchises make. If the Canucks hold him and miss the playoffs, he walks for free. If they trade him now, his production-to-cap-hit ratio could net a legitimate draft pick or a high-upside prospect.
The inclusion of players like Filip Chytil and Drew O’Connor—guys with term left—suggests Vancouver is trying to clear cap space to perhaps take a bigger swing next summer. It’s a dangerous game to play in a market as passionate as Vancouver, but holding onto depreciating assets is how you get stuck in the “mushy middle” of the standings.
If they can move Myers and Kane without retaining salary, this deadline could be a massive win for the future of the Hughes era.
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