In this edition of the Vancouver Canucks News & Rumors, Brock Boeser is the team’s most significant upcoming unrestricted free (UFA) agent and is set to secure the biggest deal of his career. Also, the Canucks have made Vincent Desharnais available for trade. Additionally, J.T. Miller made his return to the lineup.
Boeser’s Next Contract
Boeser stands out as the Canucks’ most important free agent heading into the offseason. The forward is coming off his first 30- and 40-goal season and currently has eight goals through 21 games while missing a few games due to a concussion. Boeser is in the final year of his three-year deal with an annual average value (AAV) of $6.650 million. Sportsnet’s Nick Kypreos said that Tampa Bay Lightning forward Jake Guentzel pushed the value of UFA wingers after signing an eight-year deal with an AAV of $9 million.
“Boeser is looking for eight years, north of $8 million AAV range, and Vancouver isn’t yet prepared to pay him what his projected value is. If no contract extension is on the way, the idea of losing him for nothing in free agency isn’t all that appealing either. Canucks management isn’t one to sit around and have been rather busy traders in recent seasons. Until an extension is signed, Boeser will be a trade candidate to watch this season.”
Boeser hasn’t had it easy this season. Along with his concussion, his 2023-24 season ended due to a blood clot, which he spent the offseason recovering from. General manager Patrik Allvin said he’ll need to see more consistency out of the forward when discussing his goals for this season back in September (from ‘One-on-one with Canucks GM Patrik Allvin: ‘We’re not going to waste any time here’,’ The Athletic, Sept 17, 2024).
“For now, his main focus is to come back here and play to the level that he showed last year. And even be more consistent.
“I told him that he could’ve scored 50 goals, but I felt he took his foot off the gas when he scored 30 and we want to see him pushing through.”
Boeser has been fairly consistent this season, despite missing some time. Although he likely won’t reach the 50-goal mark, he is on pace to near the 30-goal mark again. However, with Miller returning to the lineup, he still has a chance to surpass the 30-goal mark.
Canucks Make Desharnais Available
Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman said the Canucks are trying to find a better fit for Desharnais. The organization signed the forward this offseason to a two-year deal with a $2 million AAV. The Edmonton Oilers and Toronto Maple Leafs are two teams who held interest in re-signing him this past offseason.
Related: Cody Hodgson: A Promising Career Cut Short
Desharnais has struggled with the Canucks since the start of the season. He has two assists and 15 penalty minutes in the 17 games he’s played. The Canucks have shown they are willing to fix a problem fairly quickly. For example, they signed Daniel Sprong in the offseason and traded him after nine games. Still, it will be difficult to move the defenceman due to his poor play and two-year deal. However, if the organization finds a way to trade him, they will have a little more wiggle room to improve their blue line thanks to the additional cap space.
J.T. Miller’s First Game Back
The Canucks haven’t been able to play with a healthy roster all season long. Thatcher Demko returned recently, while Boeser was out with a concussion for some time. Additionally, Miller took a leave of absence for personal reasons and recently returned after missing 10 games. Miller registered two assists in his first game back against the Florida Panthers. Tocchet praised the forward for the work he did against Aleksander Barkov (from ‘Canucks 4, Panthers 0: A dream return for J.T. Miller
’,’ The Province, December 12, 2024).
“I thought he did a good job against Barkov. He’s a big guy in the middle. You know, it’s tough to go around him.”
Miller’s return to the lineup adds an intriguing dynamic, given the ongoing discussion about his relationship with Elias Pettersson. Pettersson elevated his game before Miller’s absence and continued to excel while the American forward was away. However, in the game against the Panthers, Pettersson logged just 14:27 of ice time, the lowest of his season, and failed to record a point. That said, the Canucks took an early 3-0 lead in the second period, likely prompting Tocchet to distribute ice time more evenly across the lineup. Pettersson struggled with consistency earlier this season, and if those struggles resurface, talk about his relationship with Miller will only get louder.
