Report: Canucks could have gotten more for Horvat, failed to listen to all offers

In case you missed it yesterday, the Vancouver Canucks traded captain Bo Horvat to the New York Islanders in exchange for Anthony Beauvillier, Aatu Raty and a 1st round pick.

The Islanders are obviously getting the better player in the deal in Horvat, who is on pace for a career season. The thing is... Horvat is NOT signed past this season and is slated to become an unrestricted free agent this upcoming offseason. It remains to be seen what Isles GM Lou Lamoriello does with Horvat, but it's clear that Lamoriello and the Islanders have their sights set on a playoff spot this Spring, otherwise why would they stick their necks out so far for a rental player. The thing is, the Islanders have had so much difficulty filling the net this season and they've just acquired a guy who's on pace to score 50 goals this season. That's a win.

Interestingly enough, NHL insider Elliotte Friedman reports that the Islanders have had NO contract negotiations with Horvat. just yet.

Yikes... that's a LOT of risk for the Isles.

Even if they do manage to sign Horvat, how much money do they want to commit to a guy who has suddenly popped off in a contract year?

Horvat had also been linked to the Toronto Maple Leafs, Colorado Avalanche, Detroit Red Wings, Carolina Hurricanes and the Boston Bruins in trade rumors. In the end though, it appears that no one was willing to pay the price that Isles GM Lou Lamoriello paid. There were rumors circulating that Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman offered up a similar deal to the Islanders' with Tyler Bertuzzi, Filip Zadina and a 1st round pick floated as a comparable offer to the one the Canucks accepted. 

The Bruins reportedly pushed hard until the final moments of the trade, but according to Nick Goss of NBC Sports Boston, the Canucks ask of a player, a prospect and a 1st round pick was too steep of a price.

From Goss:

One of Jake DeBrusk, Pavel Zacha or Trent Frederic, plus Fabian Lysell and a 2023 first-rounder would be comparable to Beauvillier, Raty and a first-rounder. That would have been a very steep price for a B's organization that lacks elite prospects as well as high-end young players at the NHL level.

- Nick Goss

The thing is... we have no proof that the Canucks ever received any of these offers and we may never have proof. It's intriguing to me though that ESPN insider Kevin Weekes is reporting that the Canucks didn't shop the offer they had from the Islanders, effectively selling themselves short.

From Weekes:

Honestly though, do I think the Canucks could have gotten more for Horvat? Maybe, but with the way things are going in Vancouver I think there's value in simply moving on from things. With Horvat hanging around things only stood to get more and more tense with a team that looks like it's in a very fragile state. I think the Canucks were wise to pull the trigger on a deal once they had one that they were comfortable taking.

It's also worth noting that the Islanders, unlike the Bruins, are desperate and honestly needed to make a move in order to shake up their stagnant season. The Bruins though? They're anything but desperate. Under new head coach Jim Montgomery the Bruins look calculated and in control. A panicked, overpayment of a trade would send the wrong message to this team's players and its fanbase. Smart move by making no move by GM Don Sweeney.

The Red Wings? Well, they've got their own pending UFA captain to worry about...