Second chance? 13 interesting fits for Canucks among unqualified RFAs

Neville E. Guard/USA TODAY Sports

The free agent market just got a little more crowded.

According to CapFriendly, 90 more players will become unrestricted free agents after they weren’t extended a qualifying offer by their team.

Three of those players were Vancouver Canucks, as Justin Bailey, Matthew Highmore, and Juho Lammikko are all set to become unrestricted free agents.

With the UFA list growing, here are 13 intriguing options for the Canucks among players who officially became UFAs on Monday.

1. Dominik Kubalik, LW/RW

2021-22 Stats (CHI): 78 GP, 15 G, 17 A, 32 PTS

After spending the first three seasons of his NHL career with the Chicago Blackhawks, Dominik Kubalik will be looking for a new home. The 26-year-old was due a qualifying offer of $4 million, which was too rich for a Blackhawks team that is tearing their roster down to the studs.

Kubailk’s market value is $3.2 million, according to The Athletic’s Dom Luszczyszyn.

2. Dylan Strome, C

2021-22 Stats (CHI): 69 GP, 22 G, 26 A, 48 PTS

For a team in need of future assets, it wasn’t really good business for the Blackhawks to let 25-year-old Dylan Strome become a UFA. Strome has had some ups and downs in the NHL, but he’ll be highly coveted on the open market as a second-line centre.

While he’d be an interesting fit in Vancouver, signing him is only plausible if J.T. Miller is traded or the Canucks shed cap space.

3. Jonathan Dahlen, LW

2021-22 Stats (SJS): 61 GP, 12 G, 10 A, 22 PTS

Remember when Canucks fans were dreaming of an Elias Pettersson-Jonathan Dahlen duo? Well, that could be a reality in 2022-23. After starting out hot with seven goals and nine points in his first 15 NHL games, Dahlen’s production took a nosedive in San Jose.

Sharks General manager Mike Grier was pretty blunt about why the Sharks didn’t qualify Dahlen.

Grier: "It all starts with competitiveness. And that doesn't always have to mean that they're the biggest guy in the room, but it's got to be a high level of competitiveness and hardness…you'll probably start to see a little bit more of that coming to the organization."

— Sheng Peng (@Sheng_Peng) July 11, 2022

Dahlen has a strained relationship with the Canucks, although that was under a former management regime.

Could Dahlen consider a reunion with the Canucks under new leadership?

4. Rem Pitlick, LW/C

2021-22 Stats (MIN/MTL): 66 GP, 15 G, 22 A, 37 PTS

Rem Pitlick seemingly came out of nowhere this season to score at a 45-point pace. After being claimed off of waivers from the Minnesota Wild, the 25-year-old averaged over 17 minutes per game for the bottom-dwelling Montreal Canadiens.

Career goal No. 1, No. 2, and No. 3… congrats to Rem Pitlick on the @Enterprise hatty❗ pic.twitter.com/4yIeE3uEdJ

— NHL (@NHL) November 14, 2021

Likely scared by his arbitration case, Pitlick went unqualified and will hit the open market. The winger plays with pace and can provide offence in a middle-six role.

5. Danton Heinen, LW

2021-22 Stats (PIT): 76 GP, 18 G, 15 A, 33 PTS

For the second straight season, Danton Heinen will go from RFA to UFA after he wasn’t extended a qualifying offer. The Langley, BC native could be a great fit for the Canucks. He’s proven to be a good complimentary player alongside talented linemates thanks to his on-ice awareness.

A breakaway beauty from Danton Heinen. 🤩 pic.twitter.com/KuhSf0vVHi

— NHL (@NHL) April 14, 2022

Heinen has played at a 36-point pace per season over his six-year NHL career.

6. Ondrej Kase, RW

2021-22 Stats (TOR): 50 GP, 14 G, 13 A, 27 PTS

Ondrej Kase had an extremely effective 2021-22 campaign after concussion issues cut his last two seasons short. However, he’ll become a UFA after the Toronto Maple Leafs seemingly couldn’t afford his arbitration case.

Kase provided secondary scoring while shouldering heavy matchup minutes for the Leafs in 2021-22.

7. Nicolas Aube-Kubel, RW

2021-22 Stats (PHI/COL): 74 GP, 11 G, 12 A, 23 PTS

Fresh off of a Stanley Cup ring with the Colorado Avalanche, physical winger Nicolas Aube-Kubel is set to become a free agent. Despite going scoreless in 14 playoff games, Aube-Kubel did find some offence in his game during the regular season, registering 22 of his 23 points with the Avalanche.

He’s one of the most physical wingers in the game right now and could be a low-cost fit if the Canucks want to add more sandpaper to their lineup.

8. Brendan Lemieux, LW/RW

2021-22 Stats (LAK): 50 GP, 8 G, 5 A, 13 PTS

Speaking of physical, there aren’t many guys who stir things up as much as 25-year-old Brendan Lemieux. Aside from banging bodies, Lemieux also showed an ability to help control possession. He had the third-best expected goals differential among Los Angeles Kings forwards this season.

9. Ty Ronning, RW

2021-22 Stats (AHL): 69 GP, 18 G, 21 A, 39 PTS

The son of former Canucks centre Cliff Ronning is set to become a UFA for the first time in his career. After playing junior hockey for the Vancouver Giants, he could be an intriguing pick-up for the Abbotsford Canucks next season.

10. Kevin Stenlund, C

2021-22 Stats (AHL): 42 GP, 8 G, 17 A, 25 PTS

There’s nothing flashy about Kevin Stenlund’s game, but he would fill an organizational need for the Canucks. Stenlund is a big (6’4, 210 pounds) right-shot centre whose strengths are positioning and defensive awareness. He spent all of the 2020-21 season with the Columbus Blue Jackets before spending most of this season in the minors. Skating and pace of play are an issue with Stenlund, but he could be a worthwhile depth addition in free agency.

11. Vladimir Tkachev, LW/RW

2021-22 Stats (AHL): 41 GP, 7 G, 22 A, 29 PTS

Vladimir Tkachev’s first season in North America didn’t go according to plan. Signed by the Kings last offseason, Tkachev registered two assists in four NHL games and spent the rest of the year down with the Kings’ AHL affiliate in Ontario, CA. Tkachev played with both Vasili Podkolzin and Andrei Kuzmenko for St. Petersburg SKA in the KHL back in 2020-21.

12. David Farrance, D

2021-22 Stats (AHL): 50 GP, 1 G, 13 A, 14 PTS

David Farrance is a former third-round pick of the Nashville Predators in 2017. The 23-year-old is seen as a steady, two-way, left-shot defenceman with some offensive pop to his game. The issue is, he wasn’t much of a difference offensively in the AHL last season. That’s part of the reason why Nashville didn’t qualify him, but there could be some untapped upside here for a Canucks team in need of more defensive depth.

13. Nicolas Meloche, D

2021-22 Stats (SJS): 50 GP, 2 G, 7 A, 9 PTS

There’s not much offence to Nicolas Meloche’s game, but the 24-year-old is a big, right-shot defenceman who was second on the San Jose Sharks with 158 hits in just 50 games. Meloche also had one of the highest rates of blocked shots in the NHL last season. He was thrust into a tough situation with the Sharks last year, where he largely struggled in heavy defensive minutes alongside Marc-Edouard Vlasic. However, he did have an impressing 61% expected goals for while playing with his other most common partner, Jaycob Megna.

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