Rumor: Four Canucks in trade talks, including goalie Markstrom

It’s been an up and down season for the Vancouver Canucks. Led by young guns like Elias Pettersson, Brock Boeser and rookie Quinn Hughes, the Canucks started off the season on fire and looked like they could finally squeak into the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time in half a decade. Fast forward to today though and the Canucks are sitting four points out of a playoff spot and are riding a three game losing streak. 

In other words: The Canucks have blown it.

Well, not quite… but things are certainly headed that way. 

In his latest 31 Thoughts column for Sportsnet, NHL insider Elliotte Friedman reports that four Canucks players could find themselves on the trade block should the team continue their current slide.

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We’ll see what happens from now until February, and how negotiations go — but there will be interest in Josh Leivo and Chris Tanev. I’d include Jacob Markstrom, but goalies are tricky. Some teams hate doing that at the deadline, believing that it’s too difficult a position to integrate. And many of the contenders seem good in net.

Overall, though, the Canucks are going for the post-season and will probably stick with the current roster if in the race.

Friedman then goes on to name forward Micheal Ferland as another potential trade target. 

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I don’t believe anyone is ruling out Micheal Ferland for the season, as has been rumoured in British Columbia. But I do believe no one’s going to be rushing him back into the lineup.

Josh Leivo and Ferland could certainly fetch a return on the trade market, as could Chris Tanev. Jacob Markstrom is a legit NHL starter, but as Friedman points out, it’s tough to get teams to make a trade for a starting goalie in-season. The San Jose Sharks make sense as a trade target, but it seems unlikely that the Canucks would make a move in-season with a divisional rival. Stay tuned, Canucks fans.