Vancouver Canucks Already Found Dakota Joshua's Replacement Less Than a Week After the Trade
Photo credit: The Hockey News
The Vancouver Canucks are currently struggling to sign top-free agents on the open NHL market, so it appears that General Manager Patrik Allvin will have to result to young internal prospects to fill the gap in the bottom-6.
Just last week, Patrik Allvin and the Canucks made the controversial decision to trade away fan favorite power forward Dakota Joshua to the Toronto Maple Leafs for just a 4th-round pick in the 2028 NHL draft, but their reasoning for the move was clearly for other reasons.
The real reason was to shed his $3.25 million contract off the books in order to gain more cap space and get a top UFA, but it is proving to be far harder than previously expected.
It came to even a bigger stop when a new report came to the surface that showed Joshua joined some pretty elite company when it comes to power forwards, becoming just one of three forwards to have 35+ goals and 650+ hits since the 2022-2023 season.
"#LeafsForever new acquisition Dakota Joshua is 1 of 3 players in the NHL with 35+ goals & 650+ hits since 2022-23:
Brady Tkachuk
Kiefer Sherwood
Dakota Joshua" Sportsnet Stats said.
Brady Tkachuk
Kiefer Sherwood
Dakota Joshua" Sportsnet Stats said.
Vancouver Canucks Find Dakota Joshua's replacement in the bottom-6
Despite trading away Joshua, all the strong evidence points to the fact that the Canucks won't be able to sign an upgraded free agent with their available cap space, which means Allvin is now looking in words for a solution.
Many prospects and young forward can step into the role, but it comes down to who is the right one.
Members of The Hockey Writers have suggested three names that make the most sense, and one of them appears 24-year-old Arshdeep Bains is the front-runner to fill the hole.
Arshdeep Bains has tried to find his way into the Canucks lineup permanently for the past two seasons. He was able to get into 13 games during 2024-25 and was even able to score his first NHL goal, but he still needs to find a role on the team if he wants to stay with Vancouver all season long. What better way to show you belong than by grabbing a spot that needs to be filled... If he can improve on his physical game and bring his scoring ways from the American Hockey League (AHL) to the NHL, he will be exactly the type of player that the Canucks are looking for to replace what Joshua brought to their lineup. - Lukas Bernasiewicz
Other names like Kiefer Sherwood or Drew O'Connor would be clear choices, but they already have secured their own role on the team, and the Canucks are looking to find a new name to step up and secure his own place.
Source: The Hockey Writers
3 Canucks Who Could Replace Dakota Joshua
3 Canucks Who Could Replace Dakota Joshua
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