Big events are coming for the Vancouver Canucks with July 1st coming quickly. Free agency, the 2025 NHL draft, and their AHL team maybe winning their first league championship in franchise history. Abbotsford wanted to close it out on Saturday, but there’s another team on the ice who said differently.
Canucks Have Big July 1st Week: Big Questions to Answer
Will Malhotra Stay With The Team?
We bring up the Abbotsford Canucks not so much for their players – though they matter – but for their coach. Manny Malhotra has done a phenomenal job with Abbotsford in his first season as head coach. Their special teams have been excellent in the playoffs, despite playing more games than anyone else so you know it’s not luck.
The one NHL team with a coaching vacancy is the Dallas Stars. They have the rest of their coaching team in place, but a new head coach will bring their own people. The Stars got an up-close look at Malhotra’s work in the AHL Western Final, where Abbotsford beat Texas in six.
There is risk in bringing in a new voice from outside an otherwise quite successful system. The losing coach, Neil Graham, has been head coach since 2019-20, so he certainly knows the franchise. Malhotra also spent time in the Stars’ system and was teammates with some of the people currently in suited positions.
On the other hand, the team may see Graham as a good safety measure should their new coach fall flat. That’s how he got the AHL job, after all, coming up from their ECHL team as an assistant before taking over mid-season.
Malhotra isn’t likely to leave for an assistant coaching job in the NHL. The people on a head coach career track tend to remain there until they reach the bigs, if they can. But never say never, and if Vancouver wants to keep him in the system, it’ll cost them.
Can Lekkerimäki Take Boeser’s Spot?
No. But that’s not an entirely bad thing.
Brock Boeser is a veteran NHL winger with a very good shot who averages 30 goals every 82 games he plays. He’s very, very good. He also does more than score goals, even if that part of his game is often underappreciated. Boeser is stronger than you think, playing the boards well and finding space in front of the opponent’s net. Defence isn’t his specialty, but he’s trustworthy.
Boeser’s also 6’1″ and around 205 lbs. Jonathan Lekkerimäki is… not. If he were a jockey, his saddle is the one they’d add weights to. Don’t get us wrong, he has an NHL-level shot, and the skill level is obvious. But don’t expect a lot of board battles or fighting for position in front of the net, especially not this coming season.
Lekkerimäki has been a regular scratch in the AHL playoffs, but has taken those scratches well. His attitude is good, and it’s just a case of gaining weight and getting some age. Given how long his season has gone, it will be tough to bulk up before the new season starts. He might start in the NHL next season, but don’t be shocked if he doesn’t. He’ll get there.
Frankly, that goes for a lot of the AHL squad right now. The Vancouver Canucks are strong at the bottom of the roster where developing players would normally inherit spots. The trick with an AHL team having this good a year is the desire to call up everyone. The reality is that if they were that good, they’d already be in the NHL.
Can the Canucks Get Cheaper, ie. Scorched Earth Rebuild?
An argument can be made for a dozen Abbotsford players to move up to Vancouver. Thing is, they need to beat ALL the arguments for keeping them down before they get promoted, and the hardest is sheer numbers. The club isn’t starting the year with three rookie defencemen and four forwards who have yet to break 50 NHL games.
It is a bit of a shame that Vancouver has no interest in a rebuild, because that would be the sort of team to do it with. A lot of players willing to work hard for their opportunities, even if it’s on a bad team. Just by sheer volume, a couple of them should break out and find good roles at the NHL level for a few years.
You need to let teams like that know that the plan is to find out who will still be here in four years and who won’t. But even the ones that won’t can find jobs elsewhere if they show up now. Or that will be their peak, and you know what? They made the frikkin’ NHL. That’s a lot to hang your hat on. You can have a good career in Europe* with that.
But the Canucks aren’t doing that. They have too much talent that frankly, they won’t get a good return on if they trade it away. In a year where a lot went disastrously wrong, they still finished with 90 points. That was a miserable season, and they still only got to 15th overall in the entry draft.
The team simply has too much talent to drop into the top-five of any draft any time soon. So, no, Gavin McKenna isn’t coming to save the team in 2026-27. Sorry.
Will the Canucks Keep the 15th Overall Pick?
It looks extremely unlikely at this point. It’s one of the few bargaining chips they have with decent value this off-season. Everyone in the league knows that they are looking for a talented, second-line centre. The fact that a dozen other teams are looking for the exact same thing isn’t helping.
Much has been made of the improved depth on Vancouver’s blue line, but the pieces that are in place now fit. Take them away, and the spot becomes a question mark once more. Granted, a much smaller question mark than in previous seasons due to a good showing from new players, but a question mark nonetheless.
Their depth on defence means “this young guy could be a solid 4-5 in the NHL in a few years!” That’s great, but it’s not someone you should expect to step in for Filip Hronek, even if he does bring a centre back. Prospects, good as they can look in short bursts, aren’t attractive to teams looking to win now. They want NHL-tested players. not potential.
This is a year where everyone’s a buyer and few are selling, so players have strong value and draft picks are weak. The salary cap is increasing by a predictable amount in the next three years, which is good for teams with deep pockets and cap space. Vancouver has the pockets, but sits around 20th for space. It’s going to be tough for the Canucks to outbid anyone on July 1st, too.
Can the Canucks Find Bargains on July 1st?
We know Brock Boeser wants to stay in Vancouver. He’d probably take a haircut to do so, but not much of one. Just as well, given his beautiful flow. But also because he’s going to be offered a lot of money on the free market, and at 28 years old, he can demand it.
The same holds true for Pius Suter, who went against the grain and had an excellent year with the Canucks. He smashed career highs in goals, points, and ice time, occasionally becoming Vancouver’s de facto top centre. He’s perfectly cast as a third-line centre, but showed he can do much more if given the opportunity.
GM Patrik Allvin got him to sign at half his previous salary by offering two seasons at a mere $1.6 million per. That’s not going to happen twice.
And for fans complaining that players “should show loyalty and sign for less” – WHY? Any NHL team will toss a player aside the instant they aren’t worth the money, if they can. Plus, there’s no guarantee the money the team saves will be put to good use. For nine seasons, Patrice Bergeron was one of the league’s best bargains.
They didn’t win the Stanley Cup, and he probably cost himself around $20 million. Brad Marchand was paid about $10 million below his value in his eight-year deal, and he went to Florida for his second Cup. Never mind the Canucks, we’re curious to see what he signs for on July 1st.
Bonus Question: Is There Any Hope At All?
Of course! That’s an essential part of fandom. It’s a veteran squad managing the team with Quinn Hughes, one of the best players in the world, as its captain. The rookie head coach was behind the bench last season, giving some continuity after a turbulent season. And we’re confident in star centre Elias Pettersson bouncing back statistically.
There are a lot of questions around the Vancouver Canucks, certainly, and that means nothing’s set in stone. And we’ll find out more in one week’s time.
Main Photo: Dan Hamilton- Imagn Images
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