Canucks looking at list of five players they're targeting in a trade: report
The Vancouver Canucks are in an unfamiliar position. The team is in first place in the NHL with only just over a month left until the trade deadline.
They are looking to add an impact player before that date and have made a list of five top-six forward targets to pursue, according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman.
“They are going to get a top-six forward,” said Friedman on the latest iteration of 32 Thoughts. “I think they’ve got a list, a couple of teams have told me, they think the Canucks have five guys they’re looking at.”
The hockey insider then linked the Canucks to two names that have come up a lot in trade rumours: Jake Guentzel and Elias Lindholm.
“Guentzel, I think that’s very real as a possibility. They obviously have a lot of Pittsburgh connections there. Lindholm, I think, is another guy that they’ve shown some interest in and he makes sense because he can play centre and wing effectively, even though he hasn’t had a great season.”
The other three players that make up this reported list are still unknown. There are quite a few options on the trade market that could fit their needs.
“I think they’ve got a couple of other guys they’re looking at. I heard one of the key things they’re thinking about is versatility,” continued Friedman on the podcast. “But they are going to try to get a top-six forward. I don’t think there’s any doubt about that. I think they really feel that they can win.”
Friedman also shared a bit about what the Canucks might be willing to part with to acquire one of the players on their list.
“They haven’t told me this, I’ve heard this from other teams. I don’t think they want to trade those young guys, like the [Tom] Willanders and the [Jonathan] Lekkerimakis,” he explained. “I’ve heard those are not the guys they want to trade, especially for a rental, they’re not doing that.”
While the Canucks might not want to deal their top prospects, there is one premium asset that they are reportedly willing to give up.
“I think they’re willing to do the first-rounder,” Friedman said.
The Canucks are currently in first place in the entire NHL and will make the playoffs barring a historic disaster. The team has found success over the past few weeks by reuniting the Lotto Line, but that has also left them without a solid second line.
Andrei Kuzmenko and Ilya Mikheyev have struggled to score and it’s clear that another top-six forward would offer the Canucks a much more well-rounded forward corps.
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