How much salary-cap space the Vancouver Canucks have left
The Vancouver Canucks have cap space again after trading Dakota Joshua and his $3.25-million salary, and everyone is wondering what comes next.
Canucks GM Patrik Allvin has $3.27 million in cap space according to PuckPedia, but in reality, he has even more money to play with.
After trading Joshua, #Canucks have $3.27M Projected Cap Space with 22 active players (13F/7D/2G)https://t.co/l1lQ9yKqqb
— PuckPedia (@PuckPedia) July 17, 2025
The Canucks could afford to spend over $4 million on a free agent, provided they kept a 22-player roster, rather than the maximum 23 players NHL teams are allowed to carry.
The PuckPedia projection assumes that Nils Åman ($825,000), Linus Karlsson ($775,000), Aatu Räty ($775,000), Pierre-Olivier Joseph ($775,000), and 21-year-old defenceman Elias Pettersson ($838,333) all make the team.
Not included on the projected roster are Arshdeep Bains ($775,000), Max Sasson ($775,000), Jonathan Lekkerimäki ($918,333), Tom Willander ($950,000), and Victor Mancini ($870,000).
If we assume the Canucks roll with PuckPedia’s projection, minus Ă…man, they would have $4,095,000 left to spend.
That money diminishes if Willander, Lekkerimäki, or Mancini make the team, though not by much.
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Who’s available for Canucks to get?
Jack Roslovic is the player generating the most buzz on the free agent market.
The 28-year-old forward is coming off a 39-point (22-17-39) season with the Carolina Hurricanes, and made $2.8 million last season. Roslovic has played centre at various points in his career, but may be more well-suited to lining up on the wing.
Should they decide to look for a more natural centre, the Canucks could opt for Marco Rossi out of Minnesota or Pavel Zacha from Boston. Both players are reportedly available via trade, though they won’t come cheap.
Rossi is an undersized 23-year-old centre who scored 60 points in his second full NHL season in 2024-25. He’s a restricted free agent in need of a big raise.
Zacha, 28, has two years left on a contract paying him $4.75 million. He has been a consistent scorer in three years with the Bruins, scoring 47 points (14-33-47) last season. The Czech native scored a career-high 59 points (21-38-59) in 2023-24 and had 57 points (21-36-57) in 2022-23.