Canucks should consider trading Brock Boeser – The Hockey Writers – Vancouver Canucks

The Vancouver Canucks are expecting a busy offseason starting July 1. The team is in desperate need of more defenders, as they currently only have four signed for next season. The team is also looking to trade forward Ilya Mikheyev to suitors as he does not fit well in head coach Rick Tocchet’s new system and freeing up his $4.75 million cap hit will be very beneficial for the team. But trading Mikheyev probably won’t yield much in return that Vancouver can use to help their team win now. If the Canucks are looking to trade a player to help their team win right now, the ideal player would be Brock Boeser.

Trading Boeser will give the Canucks the best return

The idea of ​​trading Boeser is not a new idea. The forward had been the subject of countless trade rumors before the start of the season and it looked like his days in Vancouver might be numbered. But this season, he had his best season of his career (40 goals, 73 points), bringing his commercial value to a record level. Vancouver lost several important assets in the Elias Lindholm trade, including a top defensive prospect in Hunter Brzustewicz who Vancouver could have used down the line as they continue to search for a defenseman. Vancouver will need to replenish its asset cabinet and trading a player like Boeser is its best option for that.

Players like Boeser have fetched high prices in recent years. For example, the Los Angeles Kings acquired Kevin Fiala from the Minnesota Wild for a first-round pick and Brock Faber. The Ottawa Senators acquired Alex DeBrincat from the Chicago Blackhawks for the seventh overall pick, which became Kevin Korchinski with a second round pick and a fourth round pick in 2024. If these players were able to get this return in a transaction, the Boeser exchange should allow Vancouver to get closer to the same return. Assets similar to these would be monumental for Vancouver, as they have no draft picks in the first two rounds. So if they get a late first round pick or even a second round pick, the team can choose to keep it and use it in the draft, or trade the pick to another team in exchange for ‘a defender.

Boeser has 1 year left on his contract

Boeser is currently entering the final year of a three-year contract that pays him just under $6.7 million per season. With the career season he just completed, he will be looking to cash in on a big payday, as many of his teammates and colleagues in the NHL have done recently. With the Canucks having a lot of money tied up in Elias Pettersson and JT Miller, they may not have the option to sign Boeser unless they want to trade a big money player like Quinn Hughes, which in my opinion , would be a bad decision. Vancouver might consider trading a player like Conor Garland to free up cap space for Boeser, but Garland played so well in the playoffs this spring, especially against the Edmonton Oilers in Vancouver’s final round.

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Boeser was a big help to Vancouver during the regular season and his playoffs were cut short due to unfortunate blood clotting issues that arose unexpectedly. But the cap relief that could come from a Boeser trade and the assets Vancouver can accumulate in that deal could far exceed Boeser’s potential production over the next few seasons. A trade will also help the Canucks avoid a lengthy contract negotiation with Boeser that I’m sure general manager Patrik Allvin doesn’t want to endure again after going through that process with Pettersson and most recently Fillip Hronek. If Boeser’s trade number is too high, trading him will be the best option for the team, as they will not have to go through a long trading process with him and will be able to obtain many assets for him.

Vancouver needs to look to the future of their team and what they need right now is a stable defense and future draft assets. Trading Boeser can help them accumulate that and several young players can do what Boeser does with a lower ceiling. Losing him won’t be the worst thing for the franchise.