It's draft combine week in Toronto, as we inch closer to the day when the Canucks start to determine their future with the sixth pick overall.
Abbotsford native Jake Virtanen will be on hand for the proceedings, but won't be participating in the fitness segment. Virtanen underwent shoulder surgery last week and is expected to be off the ice for four to six months.
I know Virtanen's an appealing prospect for Canuck fans—local boy, big body, seems to have a good attitude—but most of the projections that I've seen rank him well below a sixth pick. I'd think the surgery will drop him further: it adds another question mark to his development process.
I'd agree with those of you who are suggesting that he's a player who could be targeted by the Canucks if they acquire another, lower first-round pick at some point before the draft.
How might that happen? AlexF called me out over the weekend on my assertion that the Canucks won't make big moves over the summer as Jim Benning tries to revitalize the key players that he has. He said:
I do think Benning will look to make some effort to rejuvinate the squad, but if he does wait a year to wait and see it'll be another wasted season trying to run with the same core that did so well 4 years ago.
When I made my original comment, I certainly didn't mean to infer that Benning would give the group an entire year if it didn't look like the bounce-back was happening. I think there will be lots more player movement during the 2014-15 regular season than we saw this year, with the increase in the salary cap. There will be opportunities for mid-season moves once Benning gets a chance to properly assess what we have.
As an aside, Jame Mirtle has an interesting piece in The Globe and Mail, where he talks about how this year's major-market playoffs has been a revenue-generating dream for the NHL—and could help push next year's cap above that $69 million number that has been bandied about.
Over the weekend, I started thinking about Jim Nill, who took over in Dallas last April. He went to work quickly.
First, he sent a draft pick to Ottawa in exchange for the rights to Sergei Gonchar, then signed him before he hit free agency. Then, he drafted Valeri Nichushkin, the high-risk pick who has turned out to be a gem. Then, of course, he went all-in on the Tyler Seguin deal.
The Stars were in a different position last summer than the Canucks are now, but Nill certainly didn't buy into my "let's see what we have" philosophy before he started wheeling and dealing.
So we'll see. I still don't think Benning will start by shipping out an NTC player, but stranger things have happened.
Obviously, a lot will depend on Ryan Kesler and whether he actually wants to stay or go. Though Anaheim certainly has the assets to do a deal—and I was impressed by the tenacity that Devante Smith-Pelly brought to the proceedings in the Ducks' series against the Kings—I'm going to refrain from handing over Kesler to a division rival until we see some evidence that a move must be made.
As far as Alex's other points:
"If we all know that Alex Edler is not as bad as his 13-14 season, then so does the entire league's scouting departments, who get paid to know."
Fair enough. Keep in mind that pro scouts are watching more than one team, so they might not be as familiar with every detail of a player's on-ice resume as we are.
That being said, Benning and company were able to make a good deal for Tyler Seguin from a position of weakness last summer, after publicly maligning him for his playoff effort and off-ice activities. Are we ready to see Edler do for another team what Seguin did for Dallas this year?
Finally, regarding Santorelli, Alex says: "Benning will never be able to bring in a bigger player who's just as versatile as Santorelli for $550K."
Agreed. But Santorelli's price is no longer $550K: he's an unrestricted free agent. Santorelli was basically finished in the NHL when he signed that deal with Vancouver last summer, after failed stints in Florida and Winnipeg. He rebuilt his brand with Vancouver, so to speak, so I expect he'll field offers from plenty of teams who are looking for a versatile player with great fitness.
Santorelli's a local boy who was happy to play in Vancouver, but I think he'll get an offer he can't refuse from another team, that'll be much higher than anything Vancouver would be willing to pay.
It was great to see such good-spirited discussion in the comment section this weekend. Mr. Benning managed an approval rating of close to 70 percent in my poll, so I guess we're all feeling like there's nowhere to go but up!