5 hard decisions new Canucks management team will soon need to make
The Sedins and Ryan Johnson have been hired, spoken with the media, and begun to repair the Vancouver Canucks’ damaged reputation in the community.
But now comes the hard part.
They’ve taken over the league’s worst team, and big decisions await.
Just over five weeks remain before the NHL Draft, which takes place June 26 and 27 in Buffalo, and the Canucks are armed with four selections in the first 41 picks.
Free agency comes quickly after that, on July 1.
And then there’s the trade market.
1. Will Hronek be named captain?
Something that hasn’t been brought up much lately is the Canucks captaincy question.
The Canucks have been without a captain since they traded Quinn Hughes in December, and momentum appeared to be on the side of Filip Hronek being handed the C next season.
But that was under the old management.
What do Johnson and the Sedins think?
2. Will they trade Pettersson?
The Sedins have been asked about Elias Pettersson a bunch already.
They brought up the topic of preparation, which was a not-so-subtle hint that they think he needs to work harder in the offseason.
“We’ve been through this, as players, exactly what he’s been through,” Daniel said last week. “You’re going to have some really good seasons, you’re going to have some tougher seasons.
“What we found after a long career, looking back, is that the best seasons we had, we were well prepared… That is everything you can control: how hard you work in the summer. Mentally ready to go when training camp hits. So I think that’s the one message to him, is preparation.”
Henrik framed it as Pettersson needing to make a decision on what type of player he wants to be.
“If he decides, and the preparation is there, he can come back,” Henrik said. “We’re not going to ask him to be anything unbelievable for us. He should come in, be a great teammate, and show that he’s done the preparation that he needs to.”
If management doesn’t believe anything will be different, how hard will they push to trade Pettersson? He has a no-movement clause in his contract, but perhaps he’d be open to waiving it.
3. What about other veteran players?
Brock Boeser, Jake DeBrusk, and Marcus Pettersson also have no-movement clauses. So does Hronek. Will any of them be willing to waive?
You need veteran players in a rebuild, but management has also expressed a desire for a fresh start and to improve the culture. Perhaps they can do that with their existing veterans, but we’ll see.
Hronek’s value is sky high, while the other three wouldn’t exactly bring back a big haul.
4. How will they spend money in free agency?
Vancouver isn’t a top destination for free agents, but they are able to offer opportunity.
Looking for power play time? Top-six forward minutes? The Canucks have openings.
Will the Canucks overspend on players to convince them to sign? Will they look for one-year deals with players, with designs on flipping them at the trade deadline?
It’ll be fascinating to see how they approach July 1.
5. Will they risk the Malhotra father-son duo?
It seems like a foregone conclusion that the Canucks will hire Manny Malhotra as their next head coach.
But will he coach his son?
There’s a very real possibility that Caleb Malhotra is the top-ranked prospect on Vancouver’s list when they make the third overall pick at the draft. They reportedly love the 17-year-old centre’s game, after he lit up the OHL with the Brantford Bulldogs this past season.
But having your top prospect being coached by his father would be unusual and is filled with potential pitfalls.
Despite that, it seems Johnson is willing to go there.
“As far as his son or the draft, I’m in no position to change or make decisions based off one or the other. There will be no sacrifice because of a father-son relationship,” he told reporters earlier this week.