The Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»Canucks are in one of the worst possible positions heading into the 2025 NHL Trade Deadline: on the playoff bubble.
If you're in the league's basement, your course of action is clear: sell, baby sell. Let your pending unrestricted free agents know to pack their bags, because they're on their way to a contender.
Likewise, if you're battling for the top of your division, you're in the enviable position of adding a potential difference-maker to your team, especially if you've carefully accrued the cap space to do so.
The Canucks, however, are stuck in the middle: not good enough to compete with the best teams in the division but also not bad enough to be out of the playoff picture entirely. Should they be buyers or sellers? Should they be both?
It's trade deadline day, so let's fire up the live blog. Refresh often because you never know what's going to happen and sound off in the comments below.
UPDATE: Now that the deadline is over, it's time to switch this over from a liveblog to a recap. That means instead of the most recent update at the top, the extravaganza will now go in chronological order. How thrilling!
9:30 a.m. | The big question for the Canucks is whether or not they're going to trade pending unrestricted free agent Brock Boeser. Signs are pointing to yes, especially after news that Mikko Rantanen, the biggest name on the trade board, has been moved from the Carolina Hurricanes: traded to the Dallas Stars, with whom he signed an eight-year extension worth $12 million per year.
Sounds like trade talks are picking up on Brock Boeser.
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli)
Nothing imminent at the moment, but more likely than not that Boeser is on the move before 3pm ET.
It's a tough situation, as Boeser is beloved in Vancouver, but the Canucks don't want to risk losing him for nothing, especially when they're not securely in a playoff position. The two best options were to re-sign him or trade him and contract discussions hit a wall this season.
9:40 a.m. | Catching up after my commute to Rogers Arena this morning, we've already seen some former Canucks on the move.
Andrei Kuzmenko was traded from the Philadelphia Flyers to the Los Angeles Kings for a third-round pick in 2027.
Anthony Beauvillier went from the Pittsburgh Penguins to the Washington Capitals for a second-round pick in 2025.
And it sounds like the Penguins are sending Luke Schenn to the Winnipeg Jets for second and fourth-round picks, which is a hefty price to pay for a 35-year-old Schenn.
Meanwhile, the Canucks had interest in Josh Norris, but he's off the market, part of the second biggest trade of the day so far: Norris and Jacob Bernard-Docker from the Ottawa Senators the Buffalo Sabres for Dylan Cozens, Dennis Gilbert, and a 2026 second-round pick.​
9:50 a.m. | In the early days of PITB, Harrison Mooney and I would call our liveblogs "meta-liveblogs," as we would frequently break the fourth wall, as it were, to comment on our experience of covering the trade deadline or free agent frenzy. Accordingly, an update on the breakfast situation at Rogers Arena:
Can confirm that we have pastries and croissants. There's also a bowl of fruit and some Oikos yogurt. I'm going with the yogurt and a croissant.
​10:00 a.m. | Some of the prices paid at the NHL Trade Deadline are baffling.
Scott Laughton is on his way from the Philadelphia Flyers to the Toronto Maple Leafs and the reported return is prospect Nikita Grebenkin and a first-round pick.
That's a high price for the 30-year-old Laughton, who has 27 points in 60 games this season, has never scored 20 goals in a season, and has a career-high of 43 points.
The Flyers are retaining 50% of Laughton's $3 million cap hit, which runs through next season, and the Leafs are also getting fourth and sixth-round picks, but that still seems like a wild price for Laughton.
10:15 a.m. | We shouldn't forget that today is also a Canucks game day.
The Canucks will have their morning skate at 10:30 a.m. but Quinn Hughes was already out on the ice on his own at around 9:30 a.m., which strongly suggests he won't be in the lineup against the Minnesota Wild tonight.
10:20 a.m. | The details of the big Mikko Rantanen trade between the Carolina Hurricanes and Dallas Stars are finally coming out.
The Hurricanes will reportedly get Logan Stankoven, two first-round picks, and two third-round picks for Rantanen after signing him to an eight-year extension — a rare sign-and-trade situation. The return sounds like a lot more than what the Colorado Avalanche got when they traded Rantanen to the Hurricanes earlier this season: Martin Necas, who only has one year left before he becomes a UFA, Jack Drury, and a second-round pick.
That said, I think we're starting to see teams around the league see less and less value in late first-round picks. With the Hurricanes perenially at the top of the standings, those picks are not as valuable as they would be if they were in the top 15.
10:30 a.m. | The Jets are adding some depth at the deadline.
They already traded for Luke Schenn to boost their defensive depth. Now they're reacquiring feisty bottom-six winger Brandon Tanev, who started his career with the Jets.
The Jets are sending a second-round pick in 2027 to the Seattle Kraken for the 33-year-old Tanev, who has 9 goals and 17 points in 60 games this season.
Meanwhile, I've cracked open a Monster energy drink. The flavour is apparently "ultra peachy keen." It's fine. I wish it was a Beaver Buzz root beer, but they didn't have any in stock at the corner store. Please bear with me in this difficult time.
10:35 a.m. | Interesting to note that both Pius Suter and Brock Boeser, both of whom are pending UFAs and have been in trade rumours, are out on the ice for the Canucks at their morning skate.
That doesn't mean they won't be traded but it's clear that Rick Tocchet is approaching today as a typical game day.
10:45 a.m. | Here are the lines from the Canucks' morning skate, which isn't the typical optional skate we usually see from the Canucks.
Trade Deadline morning skate lines
— Brendan Batchelor (@BatchHockey)
DeBrusk. Suter. Boeser.
Joshua. EP40. Garland.
O’Connor. Chytil. Lekkerimäki.
Höglander. Blueger. Sherwood.
Åman.
MP29. Myers.
EP25. Hronek.
Forbort. Mancini.
The lines are largely the same as last game, just with Vittorio Mancini inserted into the lineup for the traded Carson Soucy.
10:55 a.m. | Michael Russo, who has plenty of connections to Brock Boeser via Minnesota hockey, is reporting that contract talks have resumed between Boeser and the Canucks.
Not that it means Brock Boeser won't be traded that he's on the ice an hour-plus before the deadline, but I do think contract talks resumed today between him and the Canucks.
— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey)
Boeser might not get traded after all.
11:05 a.m. | "Might Stankoven and a 1st be a potential return for Boeser?" asks Chris the Curmudgeon in the comments and I think that would be the kind of return that might get the Canucks interested. If the return isn't of that caliber, however, the Canucks are better off re-signing him.
The real question is whether they would be better off keeping him even without a contract if the return isn't good enough.
Meanwhile, Charlie Coyle is going to the Colorado Avalanche for Casey Mittelstadt.
11:30 a.m. | It's a regular game day with regular post-practice media availability, so I and the other members of the Canucks' press corps, just left the locker room.
Pending UFA Pius Suter spoke to the media and downplayed the stress of the trade deadline, saying the thing he was most looking forward to was lunch.
Speaking of lunch, the Canucks provided turkey wraps, tuna sandwiches, caesar salad, and cookies. I've never been a caesar salad guy, so here's my lunch today.
This is the thrilling trade deadline day coverage you are here for.
11:35 a.m. | Rick Tocchet shared a funny trade story after the Canucks' morning skate.
"I got a good story with Paul Coffey," said Tocchet. "He called me one night, 11:30 at night, to tell me he got traded to L.A. and he was like, 'I don't know if I'm going to like it.' I was trying to talk him off the ledge: 'You'll love it, Gretz is there, blah blah blah.'
"At the last minute, he goes, 'By the way' — because it was a three-way trade — 'You got traded too' and he hung the phone up on me.
"That's a true story. I didn't know until the next morning, I thought he was screwing around."
Asked if he called him back, Tocchet said, "He didn't pick up. That's Paul."
That trade went down on February 19, 1992. The Pittsburgh Penguins sent Paul Coffey to the Los Angeles Kings and Mark Recchi to the Philadelphia Flyers. Jeff Chychrun came back from the Kings to the Penguins, while Rick Tocchet, Kjell Samuelsson, Ken Wregget, and a third-round pick came back from the Flyers to the Penguins.
What initially looked like a bad trade for the Penguins, losing two of their best players after winning the Stanley Cup the year before, worked out very well for them: the Penguins went back to the Stanley Cup Final in 1992 and swept the Chicago Blackhawks. Tocchet had 19 points in 14 games for the Penguins in the playoffs.
11:45 a.m. | Still nothing on the Canucks front. Is it possible the trade deadline will pass with the Canucks' only move being Thursday's Carson Soucy trade?
Things are quiet around the league as well, though there will likely be a flurry as the deadline passes and trades backed up at the NHL office go through.
Latest deal: Cody Glass is heading from the Pittsburgh Penguins to the New Jersey Devils for a third-round pick. At one point, the Canucks were considering drafting Glass in 2017 but took Elias Pettersson fifth overall instead. Glass went sixth to the Vegas Golden Knights.
12:05 p.m. | The trade deadline has passed and everything I'm hearing is that the Canucks are done. Brock Boeser has not been traded; neither does he have a new contract.
As I said in the intro, the Canucks are stuck in the middle: they want to make a playoff push and feel like they need Boeser — and Pius Suter, for that matter — to do so. But now they risk losing him for nothing in free agency.
Meanwhile, Brad Marchand is on his way from the Boston Bruins to the Florida Panthers. The rats just got rattier.
12:12 p.m. | If the Canucks haven't traded Boeser, then surely they're close to re-signing him, right?
Right?
Apparently not.
Nothing on Boeser today and an extension this morning was not close.
— Rick Dhaliwal (@DhaliwalSports)
Meanwhile, Brandon Carlo is going to the Toronto Maple Leafs from the Boston Bruins.
12:15 p.m. | A big name is on the move!
It's Shea Weber.
The Utah Hockey Club traded Weber's contract, Victor Soderstrom's rights, and Aku Räty to the Chicago Blackhawks for a fifth-round pick in 2026.
In other news, the Colorado Avalanche are reacquiring Erik Johnson, according to Elliotte Friedman. No word on the return yet.
The Canucks' press corps is currently gathered in the dressing room that serves as the press room, waiting to question Patrik Allvin on his do-nothing deadline.
12:55 p.m. | Patrik Allvin's post-deadline press conference is over. With no pending trades to deal with, he spoke to the media shortly after the deadline ended.
Allvin said that the value just wasn't there for trading any of their players; the offers they were getting simply weren't good enough. And yet, when I asked him about the team not using the cap space they so carefully accrued this season, Allvin said, "You can see some of the players that got moved, the prices were high."
That seemed contradictory, so I followed up and asked why, if the prices were so high for players the Canucks might have wanted to acquire, they weren't high enough for the players the Canucks wanted to sell.
"I think that's a question you might want to ask the other teams," said Allvin. "Leading up to today, my conversations with other teams made me aware that there might be a situation, as we are here today, that we didn't do any moves. I made some players' agents aware of that."
"You could see some of the players that were dealt," he added, "they had certain playoff experience. Some of the players have performed well in bigger games and I think that's what some of the teams were looking for."
When asked directly about the offers he received for Boeser — whether the Canucks were offered a first-round pick — Allvin was blunt.
"If I told you what I was offered for Brock Boeser, I think I would have to run out of here," said Allvin, "because you would not believe me."
With that, I'm going to shut down the liveblog. I'll have some more thoughts on what Allvin did — or, rather, didn't do — today in a separate article, as well as my usual game day coverage. Thanks for following along, Bulies!
