New Report Confirms Vancouver Canucks Will Need to Overpay to Acquire a Suitable Trade Asset
An National Hockey League insider believes that Vancouver Canucks General Manager Patrik Allvin may need to overpay to acquire an asset the club desperately needs.
For at least the last four-to-five months, the Vancouver Canucks have been searching for an upgrade at the center ice position, especially for someone who can play on the second line as a replacement for J.T. Miller, who was traded to the New York Rangers in January.
Vancouver's search for that elusive second line centerman didn't go as the club had hoped and put them in a position to begin the season with Filip Chytil in that role until he suffered an injury against the Washington Capitals.
"I think the Canucks certainly tried to, you know, comb the market and see what was out there in terms of the center position. I just don't think they got close on anything." David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period said in early September.
NHL insider believes Vancouver Canucks may need to overpay for center help
During a recent edition of Canucks Conversation, Harman Dayal of The Athletic discussed the team's search for help down the middle and said that he thinks Patrik Allvin will need to overpay in order to acquire a centerman, such as Alex Wennberg of the San Jose Sharks, who the club has been linked to recently.
Dayal shared that because of how important this season could be in convincing captain Quinn Hughes to stick around beyond the 2026-27 season, Patrik Allvin may need to go out onto the market and give up and asset or two he might not otherwise want to move.
"At a time where they're drowning and Wennberg is one of the few veterans they have that can steady the ship, what does it say to that group to sell him now when they could potentially really need that support? Because look at San Jose's lineup right now. Their top-six is all young guys except for, and really their whole forward group, the only veterans you really have are Toffoli, Wennberg, Skinner and Ryan Reaves and Barclay Goodrow, but Goodrow and Reaves hardly count because they're, they shouldn't be on NHL fourth lines, like they're that bad. Wennberg is one of your only options in your top-nine because otherwise just look at all the young players they have." Dayal said.
He added, For the vibes, they could really use Wennberg, that's where it sort of becomes tricky. It's just how much are you going to overpay? Because I think when we look at this overall discussion of like how desperate and how urgent should the Canucks be to try and add a center. I think with the context of how important this year is for keeping Quinn Hughes, like you have to be, I think willing to throw some assets in and quote unquote overpay on paper."
He added, For the vibes, they could really use Wennberg, that's where it sort of becomes tricky. It's just how much are you going to overpay? Because I think when we look at this overall discussion of like how desperate and how urgent should the Canucks be to try and add a center. I think with the context of how important this year is for keeping Quinn Hughes, like you have to be, I think willing to throw some assets in and quote unquote overpay on paper."
After acquiring Lukas Reichel from the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday, it's going to be interesting to see how aggressive Patrik Allvin continues to be on the trade market and if the club is going to be without Filip Chytil for an extended period of time, he needs to act quickly in order for the Canucks to remain in the mix for a postseason berth.
Previously on Vancouver Hockey Daily
| POLL | ||
OCTOBRE 27 | 1057 ANSWERS New Report Confirms Vancouver Canucks Will Need to Overpay to Acquire a Suitable Trade Asset Do you think the Vancouver Canucks should overpay for a second line centerman if it increases their playoff chances? | ||
| Yes | 594 | 56.2 % |
| No | 463 | 43.8 % |
| List of polls | ||