Canucks' playoff hopes could ride on demise of Calgary and Winnipeg

Bob Frid-USA TODAY Sports

With little cap space and few trade candidates, the Vancouver Canucks are almost done remodelling for the 2023-24 NHL season.

It’s still a top-heavy, playoff-iffy roster that will rely on coach Rick Tocchet’s structure and improvement-from-within to compete, but there are two lingering matters that could greatly enhance the club’s chances of a breakthrough next year.

Thy names are Calgary and Winnipeg.

We have past the midpoint of July and are still waiting for these two western Canadian teams to make more moves.

The Flames have already traded ex-Canuck Tyler Toffoli, but the rumour mill has centres Elias Lindholm and Mikael Backlund on the trade block, as well as defenceman Noah Hanifin and maybe even another ex-Canuck in Chris Tanev. The worry in Cowtown is that these players, all one season out from unrestricted free agency, won’t re-sign with the club.

The ghost of Darryl Sutter haunting this franchise for next season and beyond.

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The Toffoli trade returned forward Yegor Sharangovich and a draft pick. A couple more of those type deals and the Flames will be officially re-tooling, if not rebuilding.

Then there’s Winnipeg.

The Jets have already traded centre Pierre-Luc Dubois and got decent return in two young right-handed centres and winger Alex Iafallo.

But two elephants remain in the Jets’ room: goaltender Connor Hellebuyck and centre Mark Scheifele. Both are UFA after this season, and while GM Kevin Cheveldayoff has time if he wants it, losing either player for nothing would seem a bad strategy for an organization that isn’t a free-agent destination and must rely on its own drafting and development.

As we’ve talked about, for the Canucks to make the playoff next year, they’ve got to jump a few teams in the Western Conference.

Winnipeg secured the final playoff spot last season. Calgary was the first team left out of the postseason.

Any (further?) weakening of those teams this summer would go a long way. So BC casts its eyes eastward, hoping a couple of old Smythe Division rivals play ball.