Canucks dip, don’t dive into NHL trade deadline day as minor moves ‘put us in a better situation for the summer’

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Whatever direction Vancouver Canucks general manager Patrik Allvin and management take between now and the start of the 2022-23 National Hockey League season, one word seems likely to drive their decision making: Consistency.

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Inconsistency has plagued this team this season, no matter who has been behind the bench or in the executive suites.

It’s why, even with 18 games still to go in the season, the team’s playoff hopes are all but extinguished, even after going 11-22-6 under new head coach Bruce Boudreau.

The Canucks were in a deep crater — a win-loss-OT loss record of 8-15-2 — when Boudreau took over from Travis Green on Dec. 5, and the veteran coach has guided a remarkable turnaround in results. But a just-concluded mediocre 2-3-2 homestand is a reminder of the true nature of this team.

They can win, sometimes in fun ways, but not often enough.

Consistency, Allvin agreed Monday after the NHL trade deadline, is an issue.

“I think that’s a big thing here, the consistency of doing things the right way, every day. It’s not about going into streaks. I think all good teams are having a consistent level, how you play night in and night out. What do you do every day in practice? How do you prepare yourself in being a pro,” Allvin said.

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And like his coach in recent days, Allvin was at a loss to explain why his team struggles to start games on a positive note.

“I don’t know,” he said. “I think it’s something we need to be better at for sure.”

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But instead of getting on with a full-on remake of the roster, Allvin and president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford demurred, choosing not to trade away a high-profile player.

JT Miller, even though he was one of the biggest trade chips in the league due to his performance and contract status; Brock Boeser, due to be a restricted free agent but also due to a big (US $7.5-million) qualifying offer; and Conor Garland, who clearly had several teams’ interest as a trade piece — all remain Vancouver Canucks.

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It all came as a bit of a surprise since Rutherford has never been shy about making trades in the past. When he was hired in December to replace fired general manager Jim Benning, Rutherford was said to have full rein to pursue a plan to build not just a playoff team, but a Stanley Cup contender.

Asked about how different his roster could look come next fall, Allvin wouldn’t address specifics. High-profile trades could still yet come, even if the leverage for their biggest players won’t be quite the same at the draft this summer as it was this past weekend.

Asked how different his lineup would look next fall, he simply pointed out how many players are under contract for next season.

“Well we have two UFAs, well, three if you included (Brad) Richardson,” Allvin said. “So it’s hard to answer that question.”

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Of the regulars currently on the roster, it’s actually three players who are unrestricted free agents this summer: Winger Alex Chiasson, blueliner Brad Hunt and backup goalie Jaroslav Halák.

In other words, if the lineup is going to change for next season, it will have to be through trades.

Both Allvin and Rutherford have talked about the need to sign free agents from collegiate hockey and from Europe. But they’re inheriting a scouting staff that wasn’t making NCAA scouting a priority and so are playing from behind since they only took over in early December.

Allvin said it wasn’t likely they’ll be signing any free agents from Europe or the NCAA before the NHL season comes to an end.

“No, not at this point. So we’ll see,” he said.

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What the Canucks were able to accomplish this weekend, he said, was creating some cap space while also swapping out a veteran defenseman in Travis Hamonic for a younger blueliner in Travis Dermott.

“It’s not only to create cap space, you want to make sure that you’re looking at the bigger picture, how you built the team, what do you want to accomplish,” said Allvin. “We felt that we picked up a younger defenseman in Travis (Dermott) and obviously at half of the salary from Hamonic there. … (We) can do both things here. But I also think that we’re looking in every way to improve our hockey club.”

In that respect, the Canucks recognized they weren’t going to be able to re-sign pending unrestricted free agent Tyler Motte at a salary that made sense for the club.

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“Our vision and our goal is more than just the next couple of weeks,” said Allvin. “As we’ve said, we want to create some cap space. We want to get younger. I think we accomplished that here. This will just continue to put us in a better situation for the summer.”

Shifting the team’s culture has been a talking point for Allvin since he took over. One player he could have traded, but didn’t, was veteran blueliner Luke Schenn.

“I have a lot of respect for Luke Schenn as a player and more as a person and what he means to this club off the ice in terms of being a winner,” Allvin said. “The culture, the commitment he has to being a pro every day. For me. It’s extremely important for this young group to have a guy like Luke Schenn around.”

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ICE CHIPS — Allvin declined to comment on if Halák was asked to waive his no-movement clause, but also indicated that the structure of Halák’s contract dissuaded teams from trading for him.

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