Shane Wright’s name is back in the trade conversation, and this time the Vancouver Canucks are the team drawing the most attention.
A few weeks after the Seattle Kraken center asked for a trade, nothing has actually come together yet. But according to Ben Kuzma of The Province, Wright would prefer a move to Vancouver, and there is mutual interest from the Canucks’ northern rival.
The fit makes some sense on Vancouver’s side. The Canucks have been stuck in a rough stretch since putting up 73 goals and 191 points in 162 games from 2022 to 2024, and there’s real uncertainty around what they’ll get from top-line center Elias Pettersson next season.
Filip Chytil has also been plagued by concussions as he moves into what should be the prime of his career. Aatu Räty has become one of the NHL’s best faceoff men and turned in a strong IIHF World Championships for Team Finland, but he still hasn’t shown top-six scoring upside at the NHL level.
Wright, for his part, is hardly coming off a banner year himself. The former fourth-overall pick in the 2022 NHL Draft produced 12 goals and 27 points in 74 games for Seattle last season while averaging 13:48 of ice time per night. He also struggled badly in the faceoff circle, winning just 39.7% of his draws, even though 71.3% of his shifts started in the offensive zone.
Even so, he remains a player with plenty of runway left. Not long ago, Wright was viewed as the projected first overall pick in that 2022 draft, and while the Montreal Canadiens have long since moved past that debate, he still believes there’s another level in his game. At 22, he fits the timeline Vancouver is operating on and looks like the kind of reclamation swing the club should be chasing.
There are signs of what Wright can be when things are moving in the right direction. Before last season’s dip, the Burlington, ON native put up 19 goals and 44 points in 79 games for Seattle, logging 14:04 per game. That wasn’t enough to pace the Kraken in scoring, but he still finished one point ahead of Matty Beniers in three fewer games.
Kuzma also floated a possible framework for a deal, suggesting Vancouver could include one of its own unhappy forwards. Jake DeBrusk, who still wants out of the Canucks organization unless something changes, would give Seattle the top-six scoring help it has been searching for. Kuzma added that Vancouver would probably need to attach a second- or third-round pick to get the deal done, but DeBrusk would be a logical place to start.
In Other News...
Horvat Trade Questions Are Back As Another Former Piece Gains Buzz
In the middle of Vancouvers reset, the focus has shifted from what the Canucks gave up to which young pieces might actually define the next version of the club. Aatu Raty keeps coming up for the same reason he did when he arrived in the organization: he can win draws, play a responsible center game and, with a little more offensive runway, maybe show there is more to his profile than a support role. His recent international play only added to that case, giving the Canucks another reminder that there is still some untapped value here.
Liam Ohgren and Zeev Buium sit in the same conversation for different reasons, with Ohgrens finishing touch and chemistry-driven upside making him an intriguing forward bet and Buium bringing the kind of skating and puck-moving touch that fits a rebuild built around speed and mobility. For a team trying to establish a new core, those are the kinds of traits that matter most, and the next stretch will go a long way toward showing which of these former assets can become part of the long-term answer. [Read more 🡒]
Canucks Salary Push Could Put More Than Depth At Risk
The Canucks have been operating with a clear financial goal in mind as they reshape the roster, with ownership looking to shave roughly $20 million off last seasons payroll. They have already made a sizable dent through contract drops and veteran departures, and there is still room to keep trimming without getting anywhere near the leagues salary floor.
Jake DeBrusk is one of the more notable names in that conversation, since his contract gives the club a meaningful chunk of money to move if it chooses to keep pressing ahead. Vancouver also has a handful of veterans on expiring deals who could be dealt before the March 5 trade deadline, which makes the next few months less about adding depth and more about deciding how far this reset is going to go. [Read more 🡒]
Canucks Are Taking A Massive Risk Behind Manny Malhotra
The Canucks have built a coaching staff that looks more like a leap of faith than a conventional NHL bench, with Manny Malhotra stepping in as head coach and Ryan Mougenel, Jordan Smith and Jason Krog joining him as assistants. Every one of them is new to NHL coaching at this level, even if they bring plenty of experience from lower leagues, which leaves Vancouver leaning heavily on a group that has not yet had to navigate the day-to-day pressure of an NHL season together.
Malhotra is the lone member of the staff with NHL coaching experience, and that puts a lot of weight on the structure around him. The club does still have some continuity in goaltending coach Marko Torenius and video coach Ian Beckenstein, both of whom have NHL backgrounds, but the bigger question is whether Vancouver is betting on upside, a tighter budget, or both as it tries to build something sustainable behind a first-time head coach. [Read more 🡒]