The Vancouver Canucks are officially selling the bulk of their team for parts. Although it was probably long overdue, better late than never.
With the departure of
Bo Horvat, it's only a matter of time before everyone not named Elias or Quinn is shipped out.
According to Vancouver 'Hockey Nut'
KruFrank, the Canucks are close to moving forward
Brock Boeser, and the New Jersey Devils are in the mix with forward prospect
Alexander Holtz as the trade piece.
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New Jersey is also in the running for San Jose Sharks forward
Timo Meier, so it is unlikely - albeit not impossible - that both scenarios wind up unfolding.
Boeser hasn't explicitly requested a trade but has received permission from the club to poke around the league to gauge interest. Vancouver more than likely expects to net a subprime return for Boeser, according to multiple outlets.
For New Jersey,
Alexander Holtz still possesses a promising future. The issue is, New Jersey's window to contend is officially open, so they may not want to wait around for Holtz to find his game.
In 56 AHL games with the Utica Comets last season, Holtz scored 26 goals and 51 points as a 20-year old. His strength and his shot are his greatest calling cards, though he has yet to flex those muscles in the NHL.
As Frank writes, Vancouver would need to retain salary for this sort of trade, and: "Holtz has struggled and NJD might have soured on him. But he fits the 'recipe' for VAN. I would imagine a 2nd round pick would be the ask by VAN for salary retention."
Per
CapFriendly, Boeser still has two more seasons after the current one at a $6.65 million cap-hit, so asking Vancouver to retain salary isn't as simple as a pure rental.
This is one of many juicy storylines to follow as the NHL's March 3rd deadline quickly approaches.
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