Canucks "unlikely" to re-sign Zadorov before free agency: report
The Vancouver Canucks may be losing another one of their pending free agents.
New reports suggest that contract talks between the team and defenceman Nikita Zadorov are not going well. It appears that while the two sides aren’t wildly off on the details, it’s improbable they agree to a new deal.
“I heard they weren’t far away from Zadorov’s asking price but it got to a point where neither side was willing to budge,” said Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman on theĀ Oilers Now podcast yesterday.”I believe Zadorov would’ve left money on the table to go to Vancouver.”
“I would say it appears to be unlikely although I don’t think they were as far apart on Zadorov as they were on Lindholm.”
It has already been reported that the Canucks and Lindholm are almost certainly heading for a breakup, although anything can change at this time of year. It now seems like Zadorov is headed towards the same outcome.
Friedman referenced an earlier report that suggested Zadorov was willing to take a discount to stay with the Canucks. It appears that still wasn’t enough for an agreement to be made.
It’s known that Zadorov rejected the team’s first contract offer, which was rumoured to carry an average annual value of $4.5 million.
There’s still more than two weeks before free agency officially opens on July 1. Lots can change before Zadorov officially hits the open market but the chance of him being a Canuck when next season starts is not looking good.
The 6-foot-6 defenceman earned a lot of fans in this market with his excellent postseason play, where he had eight points, including some huge goals, and provided a nasty physical presence.
Since it’s been confirmed that Ian Cole will also likely be testing free agency, the Canucks will need to make some major additions to their blue line this summer. They have just three defencemen signed for next year at the moment.
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