Elliotte Friedman Confirms The Canucks Are Shopping Star Winger

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Dawson McKenzie
December 10, 2023 (12:00)

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During the intermission of last night's Hockey Night in Canada, Elliotte Friedman confirmed speculation that the Canucks were shopping this star winger.

Canucks Reportedly Shopping Kuzmenko for Potential Trade

The Vancouver Canucks have shocked everyone this season, rocketing to the top of the standings as many believed they would need a few more years until they got there. Proving them wrong, the Canucks are off to a great start and are setting themselves up to be a contender.

That said, they are still open to making changes to their roster to shore up gaps they think are holding them back. In this case, they are shopping Andrei Kuzmenko, as confirmed by Elliotte Friedman.

Friedman at the intermission says teams are calling the Canucks about Andrei Kuzmenko. Has 1 more year at $5.5M and has a partial no-trade.

Kuzmenko is a top-6 winger who can produce and could help teams looking for depth scoring.

Kuzmenko Trade Could Be Difficult to Craft and Make work

The difficult thing about a potential Kuzmenko trade would be trying to craft something that works. He currently has a $5.5 million cap hit, which limits the teams that could take on his salary without some being retained, and along with his partial no-trade, makes the list even shorter.

Kuzmenko sits at 15 points this season in 25 games played. However, he has struggled this year, pushing himself down the depth chart and even being healthy scratched. Last season, his first in the NHL, Kuzmenko dominated, scoring 39 goals and 35 assists for the Canucks.

Many teams would love to get Kuzmenko's scoring talent, it just depends on what the Canucks are willing to take in return.