Vancouver Canucks: 5 burning questions for 2018-19 season

VANCOUVER, BC - April 3: Teammates look on as Daniel Sedin #22 and Henrik Sedin #33 of the Vancouver Canucks skate off the ice during their NHL game against the Vegas Golden Knights at Rogers Arena April 3, 2018 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. (Photo by Jeff Vinnick/NHLI via Getty Images)"n /

5 of 5

VANCOUVER, BC – MARCH 17: Vancouver Canucks Winger Sam Gagner (89) and Defenseman Alexander Edler (23) and Left Wing Daniel Sedin (22) celebrate Edler’s goal against the San Jose Sharks during the second period in a NHL hockey game on March 17, 2018, at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, BC. (Photo by Bob Frid/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

1. How much will they sell?

This will mainly be a question during the season, but it’s good to think ahead before it gets underway. The Canucks aren’t likely to make the playoffs this season as they’re still rebuilding and there are too many better teams in front of them. That means that Benning will have to sell at the deadline again.

Alexander Edler, who’s in the final season of his contract before he’s a free agent for the first time, is one potential option. He’s spent his entire career with the Canucks ever since he came into the league in 2007. He has a limited no-trade clause in his contract, which means he can go to a select number of teams. Teams will likely be lining up for his services as he can still produce. This past season, he had six goals and 34 points in 70 games playing on the top pairing. Now he isn’t a top pairing defenseman on most teams who want to chase a championship, but he can be a good middle pairing to an outstanding bottom pairing option. He can still chip in offensively, and while his possession has dipped below 50 percent the past few seasons, it’s mainly because he’s been on some bad Canucks teams.

Next. 5 burning questions for the Tampa Bay Lightning. dark

Michael Del Zotto could also be an option to trade as he’s entering the final year of his contract. At this point in his career, he can play on the middle pairing and the bottom pairing. He had six goals and 22 points last year in a full 82-game season. It was his first season with the Canucks, and he mostly played on the middle pairing last season. His possession was 46.2 percent, but every other year he’s been in the league he’s hovered around 50 percent. He’s faced a lot of injuries throughout his career, but if he’s healthy again next season, there’s no reason to think the Canucks wouldn’t get a decent return for him. There are always a lot of defensemen coveted at the deadline, and he’d be up there on a lot of teams’ lists.

There’s always the opportunity to sell more, but these two seem the most likely to be trade bait once the trade deadline gets closer.

Home/Vancouver Canucks