Canucks open to moving defensive prospect Jack Rathbone: report
The Vancouver Canucks already traded Bo Horvat, but they might not be done just yet.
Rick Dhaliwal reported on Wednesday that the club looks to be interested in exploring a trade for one of their top defensive prospects, Jack Rathbone.
He is currently injured and wont be back till after the all-star break.
Get the feeling if the Canucks are not going to use him at the NHL level – they would be open to moving him to a team that would give him a better chance to play in the NHL.— Rick Dhaliwal (@DhaliwalSports) February 1, 2023
Dhaliwal reports that Rathbone won’t be back until after the NHL All-Star Game and that the club is open to “moving him to a team that would give him a better chance to play in the NHL.”
On January 15, Rathbone was transported to a local hospital after being stretchered off the ice during an AHL game in San Jose, his second concussion in less than a year, after he crashed hard into the boards against the Bakersfield Condors in 2022.
Scary play with Adam Raska and Jack Rathbone. pic.twitter.com/e57qg87QYu
— TEAL TOWN USA – A San Jose Sharks Podcast (@TEALTOWNUSA) January 15, 2023
The 23-year-old defenceman joined the Canucks organization after then-general manager Jim Benning selected him 95th overall in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft and inked him to an entry-level contract in 2020.
Through 23 NHL games, Rathbone has struggled to establish himself as a consistent contributor on a struggling Canucks blueline, scoring a goal and three assists while failing to execute the offensive breakout plays that made him such an exciting NCAA prospect.
GM Patrik Allvin re-signed Rathbone as one of his first deals, promoting him onto a two-year one-way contract with the hockey club worth an average annual value of $850,000, according to CapFriendly.
After failing to crack the Canucks’ lineup in 2021, Rathbone went to Abbotsford and put up 40 points (10G, 30A) in 39 games. This season, he’s scored a goal and six assists in 15 games.
For a 5’11” defenceman who plays the game with speed and skill, two severe injuries are a concern moving forward.
While Rathbone was discharged from the hospital and looks poised to make a return to AHL competition after the NHL All-Star Break, he may be one of Vancouver’s trade candidates.
A former standout with Harvard, Rathbone posted two seven-goal seasons with the Crimson while adding 39 assists for 53 points in as many games.
The NHL trade deadline is March 3.