Jeff Patterson, co-host of Rink Wide Vancouver, caught up with Conor Garland. In Garland's interview, he spoke about the departure of Oliver Ekman-Larsson, a player he played with for a long time, including their days as Coyote teammates.
Garland began his NHL career as a Coyote in the 2018-19 season. That year, Oliver Ekman-Larsson had just received the captaincy in Arizona. Flash forward two years, where Garland records 39 points in 49 games and is packaged in a big deal that brings Ekman-Larsson to the Canucks in exchange for a first-rounder (Turned into Dylan Gunther), Loui Eriksson, Jay Beagle and Antoine Roussel.
The deal was necessary as the Canucks removed a few burdensome contracts and brought back a great defenseman. The problem is that the Coyotes drafted Dylan Guenther, who looks like an absolute stud and Ekman-Larsson (The main piece in the trade) struggled from the jump with Vancouver.
Ekman-Larsson played solid in his first year but was not the offensive weapon he was in Arizona. Last season was his second in Vancouver, and it was disastrous as Ekman-Larsson notched a career-low 22 points and was -24. With his cap hit of 8.25 Million dollars for four years left, it was time to buy him out.
