Thanks to the likely departures of unrestricted free agents Dan Hamhuis, Radim Vrbata and Brandon Prust, as well as the potential buyout of Alex Burrows, the Vancouver Canucks will carry a ton of salary cap space into free agency. Rumors suggest they could target high-profile UFA’s like Tampa Bay Lightning Steven Stamkos or Los Angeles King Milan Lucic. But what if they went for a big trade instead?
Even though players and management agree that the playoffs are always the goal, it is obvious that Vancouver is not in win-now mode.