Canucks' Höglander "popping up" in Ethan Bear trade talks: report
Interest from the Vancouver Canucks in Ethan Bear continues, and it turns out the Canucks have something the Carolina Hurricanes want, too.
Namely, Nils Höglander.
“His name’s popping up in the Ethan Bear talks,” CHEK’s Rick Dhaliwal said on Thursday’s edition of Donnie and Dhali.
“I talked to Ethan Bear’s agent last night. They’re just waiting. They’re waiting. Bear told his agent he’s in the greatest shape of his life and is ready to go. They’re just waiting for Carolina to pull the trade. The Canucks obviously are in the mix. They’re talking. They have talked to Carolina about Bear.”
In our first segment @DhaliwalSports had an update on Brock Boeser's injury and continued chatter around Ethan Bear.https://t.co/h4e2SL3agJ pic.twitter.com/KcT2LPvUlE
— Donnie & Dhali (@DonnieandDhali) October 27, 2022
Bear, a 25-year-old right-shot defenceman, signed a one-year, $2.2 million contract with the Hurricanes on July 28, but has not suited up for a game this season. He had 14 points (five goals, nine assists) in 58 games last season with Carolina, his first year with the organization.
The Canucks’ interest in Bear reportedly goes back to the summer when Dhaliwal reported his agent had spoken to Vancouver.
Höglander, it sounds like, could be the targeted return for Carolina.
The 21-year-old, picked in the second round (No. 40) of the 2019 NHL Draft, has one assist in five games this season and 46 points (23 goals, 23 assists) in 121 games over parts of three seasons with the Canucks.
Höglander had been assigned, as a paper transaction, to Abbotsford of the American Hockey League last week when Vancouver recalled defenceman Noah Juulsen. He’s also sat as a healthy scratch this year.
“I did hear yesterday that the Höglander interest from Carolina didn’t happen in the past week or two,” Dhaliwal said. “Carolina’s been zoned in on Höglander for a few months going back to the summer. They like this player. They’ve identified this player as a player they’d like to get out of Vancouver. The interest is not just in the last week or two from Höglander from Carolina.
“It’s been there for a while.”