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Canucks have trade interest in Lundkvist and Bear: report

Rob Williams
Rob Williams
|
Sep 19 2022, 8:48 pm
Canucks have trade interest in Lundkvist and Bear: report
Perry Nelson, Charles LeClaire/USA TODAY Sports

The Vancouver Canucks may be getting closer to a solution in their months-long pursuit of a right-shot defenceman.

The Canucks are so thin on the right side of their defence that Quinn Hughes appears to be trying to fix it himself, by recently offering to play his off-side.

But perhaps that won’t be necessary.

On Sunday night, Sportsnet’s Iain McIntyre reported that Ethan Bear was on the Canucks’ radar.

That report was backed up by Rick Dhaliwal and Elliotte Friedman on Donnie and Dhali this morning, with the pair adding that New York Rangers blueliner Nils Lundkvist is also a Canucks trade target.

Friedman explained while Bear could help the Canucks more in the short term, a Lundkvist trade may be easier to accomplish.

“I do think the Canucks are interested in Bear,” said Friedman. “The one thing is that Lundkvist’s number is easier for them cap-wise than Bear’s is. So that’s one thing. The other thing is I think Bear is a guy that can probably help them more right away. From what I hear, Bear is a tougher deal to make in terms of their fit with Carolina and the cap implications than the Lundkvist one is. We’ll see if that turns out to be true or not.

“Basically what I heard with Bear is they’re definitely interested but I’m not sure if there’s a deal to be made there. Lundkvist they’re definitely interested and I think there’s a possibility of a deal to be made there, and I think it’s a little bit easier for them for cap reasons. I just think if this season is more meaningful to them, I think Bear gives them a better shot this year than Lundkvist does.”

Dhaliwal, who spoke recently with Jim Rutherford, said the Canucks president of hockey operations told him they’re looking for right-shot defencemen under the age of 26.

Both Bear and Lundkvist fit that description.

Bear, 25, played on a deep Hurricanes team in Carolina last season after three years with the Edmonton Oilers. He scored 14 points (5-9-14) in 58 games, averaging 16:05 of ice time. The Regina native had a career-best season in 2019-20 with the Oilers, playing 21:58 per game and scoring 21 points (5-16-21) in 71 games.

At 22 years old, Lundkvist is three years younger than Bear, but he also has less experience. The 2018 first-round draft pick split last season between the NHL and AHL, appearing in his first 25 NHL games with the Rangers, scoring four points (1-3-4) in just 13:56 of average ice time.

Lundkvist, who is under contract with the Rangers for two more seasons, has requested a trade through his agent and is planning to sit out training camp, according to USA Today’s Vincent Mercogliano. The Swedish defenceman’s cap hit ($925,000) is more manageable than the $2.2 million Bear is due to make this season before he can become a restricted free agent.

Dhaliwal added that the Canucks are not likely to add another player to their training camp roster via a pro tryout contract and that 36-year-old blueliner Anton Stralman doesn’t interest them.

“There were some defencemen available in free agency — it didn’t work for us, whether it was term or what they were looking for,” Rutherford said in July. “It appears that it’s going to take longer to address the defence than we would have liked. We’re going to have to do it through trades… a right-shot defenceman would be ideal right now.”

Training camp begins Friday in Whistler, with the Canucks’ preseason schedule starting on Sunday.

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