Huge trade reported to happen right after the Stanley Cup Final

The Vancouver Canucks have been attempting to get a contract agreement done with pending restricted free agent defenseman Filip Hronek, but it feels like it’s not close to happening. If it remains that way leading up to the final game of the Stanley Cup Final between the Edmonton Oilers and Florida Panthers, Satiar Shah explained on Canucks Central that a trade could take place prior to the NHL Entry Draft on June 28.

“I’m not going to be as forceful as saying he’s guaranteed to be traded by the draft if he doesn’t sign, but I’d say there’s a really good chance that a trade happens at the draft if he doesn’t sign an extension,” Shah said.

The Canucks are facing tough roster choices on their pending free agents as they need to choose who stays and who goes as they need to re-sign the likes of Elias Lindholm and Dakota Joshua. Also, Nikita Zadorov and Tyler Myers are pending unrestricted free agents, and if they can get a return on a player like Hronek, it makes sense to what to pull the trigger ahead of the Draft or at the draft table on June 28. Vancouver’s pick in the 2024 NHL Draft isn’t until the third round and a Hronek trade could get them more draft capital in this year’s prospect pool.

Hronek kicked off the season as the No. 2 defenseman with Quinn Hughes and had a decent start though he struggled during the second half and only scored two points in the postseason. He is off a three-year deal signed while with the Detroit Red Wings which saw him make $5.5 million in the final season. He could command a contract extension higher than what the Canucks can afford, hence landing Hronek on the trade block once the Stanley Cup Final end and general managers start looking more seriously into transactions ahead of the Draft.