The Official 2020/2021 Canucks & NHL Thread

[Tim Budong]

Cap hell or cap relief... expectations now for this team, but as always, more questions than answers. Cap for the upcoming 2 years

[Hondaracer]

Ehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

[EmperorIS]

Canucks so good.

[pastarocket]

First page!

[OGCStrike]

BROCK HARD

[Jmac]

First page! Also thought we were waiting for the Stanley Cup to be awarded before starting a new thread.

[bobbinka]

[vash13]

Go Canucks Go!

[68style]

Can’t believe Eriksson still has another 2 years of 6 mill hit left... got to be one of the worst signings in history next to Scott Gomez

[Alpine]

Ugh cap space does not look good...
Eriksson and Ferland's salaries are going to handcuff the team. Paying 3M each for beagle + roussel (both on the downsides of their careers, and are 4th line material) was a massive mistake... Markstrom is in for a huge raise. Tanev deserves a raise. I'm sure someone will throw 6m at Toffoli.

[Jmac]

Originally Posted by 68style

Can’t believe Eriksson still has another 2 years of 6 mill hit left... got to be one of the worst signings in history next to Scott Gomez

It wasn’t even one of the worst 3 contracts signed that day shockingly enough.

[68style]

Originally Posted by Jmac

It wasn’t even one of the worst 3 contracts signed that day shockingly enough.

Yah I looked up his stats after and, while terrible next to his salary, I thought they were a lot lower than they actually are because of his lackadaisical play, complete lack of conviction on any shot he takes and constant don't care body language.

It's so infuriating to watch him play.

[HonestTea]

First!

[SkinnyPupp]

After 7 years away, it was nice to get back into the Canucks again. I've said it in the other thread, this group of guys is super easy to root for and get into. Hughes is a future MEGASTAR

Looking forward to watching them all year next season!

[jerche]

Gonna suck that we won't have a first/second rounder this year in a deep draft. I can't see any assets that we can give up for one either.

[68style]

^ Pearson is redundant for multiple reasons... age / about to start his decline / career year get rid of him whole value is high / can be replaced by others coming up quite easily.

His most useful point right now is being Toffoli’s best friend...

[sonick]

Originally Posted by Jmac

First page! Also thought we were waiting for the Stanley Cup to be awarded before starting a new thread.

Yes the 'rule' in the past was only after Stanley Cup was won that a new NHL thread was permitted.

Just like the 'nice xmas' thread can only be bumped Dec 1.

[Jmac]

Originally Posted by 68style

Yah I looked up his stats after and, while terrible next to his salary, I thought they were a lot lower than they actually are because of his lackadaisical play, complete lack of conviction on any shot he takes and constant don't care body language.

It's so infuriating to watch him play.

Yeah it really was the summer of awful contracts.

Just sticking to forwards who signed for at least 5 years since those ones will still have at least another year left. Starting with the longest and most lucrative contracts and working down.

Lucic: 7 x $6M, NMC all 7 years, limited NTC last 2.
136 points in 334 games. Pace: 33 points per 82 games
Current status: Bottom 6 NHL forward

Because of the length and full NMC contract of Lucic combined with 2 expansion drafts during that time frame, it goes from a bad contract to arguably the worst as his respective teams had/have to protect him instead of a better player in the expansion draft. The NMC prevents a buyout unless Lucic agrees to it, but even if he did, as he has AT LEAST half his annual pay in signing bonuses every year of the contract (including 75% in the final year), it's essentially buy-out proof even without the NMC.

Okposo: 7 x $6M, NMC first 2 years, limited NTC last 5.
137 points in 271 games. Pace: 41 points per 82 games
Current status: Bottom 6 NHL forward

Okposo is the most productive member of this list, but is currently battling concussion issues with 3 years remaining on his deal with half of his pay the next 2 years coming from signing bonuses. As the final season has no signing bonus, he will likely be bought out of the final year if he's not on LTIR, IMO.

Ladd: 7 x $5.5M, NMC first 2 years, NTC next 2, & limited NTC last 3.
72 points in 181 games. Pace: 33 points per 82 games
Current status: AHL forward

Ladd has another 3 x $5.5M left (with 3 x $3M in signing bonuses) to play in the AHL. Buying the contract out would only save $0.67M/year over those 3 years because of the signing bonuses. Arguably the worst contract on this list alongside Lucic.

Eriksson: 6 x $6M, NMC first 2 years, NTC next 2, & limited NTC last 2.
89 points in 255 games. Pace: 29 points per 82 games
Current status: Bottom 6 NHL forward

Eriksson has been disappointing to say the least but has been fairly steady in his production. Eriksson has 1 more season with a significant signing bonus and then only has a $1M signing bonus in the final year. He will likely be bought out next summer for the $2M savings, IMO.

Nielsen: 6 x $5.25M, NMC first 2 years, limited NTC last 4.
71 points in 290 games. Pace: 20 points per 82 games
Current status: Bottom 6 NHL forward

Nielsen's production dropped off a cliff this season and his contract is bizarre in that the signing bonuses all come at the back end of the contract, making it essentially buyout proof. The back-loaded signing bonuses combined with single-digit production on the worst team in the league make this one of the worst 3 contracts on the list.

Backes: 5 x $6M, NMC first 3 years, limited NTC last 2.
109 points in 256 games. Pace: 35 points per 82 games
Current status: Depth NHL forward

Backes is the oldest member of this list and many predicted it was going to be the worst contract when it was signed, but it hasn't been that bad despite barely being an NHLer at this point. He has a $1M signing bonus and $3M total salary this upcoming season, so it wouldn't surprise me if he gets bought out of the final year to save Anaheim a cool $3M in cap space.

Helm: 5 x $3.85M, NTC first 3 years.
81 points in 254 games. Pace: 26 points per 82 games
Current status: Bottom 6 NHL forward

Helm was a fast, defensively responsible 3rd line centre for the Red Wings but he's no longer fast. He has the lowest cap hit on the list, still has okay 4th line production numbers, and no signing bonuses. Arguably the best long-term contract on this list, which says a lot about how bad this free agent group was.

Honourable mention: Calgary bought Brouwer out 2 years into a 4 x $4.5M contract, so they'll still be paying him $1.5M for another 2 years after this season to play for another team.

[RiceIntegraRS]

Originally Posted by 68style

^ Pearson is redundant for multiple reasons... age / about to start his decline / career year get rid of him whole value is high / can be replaced by others coming up quite easily.

His most useful point right now is being Toffoli’s best friend...

you also forgot hes an empty specialist. hes got like 10 empty net points in the regular season and 2-3 empty net points this playoff. Nothing against the guy but with our cap issues he has to be replaced by someone cheaper. Or maybe trade him away for the rights to Max Domi, apparently the montreal fan base has gone against him.

[EvoFire]

Originally Posted by Jmac

Yeah it really was the summer of awful contracts.

Just sticking to forwards who signed for at least 5 years since those ones will still have at least another year left. Starting with the longest and most lucrative contracts and working down.

Lucic: 7 x $6M, NMC all 7 years, limited NTC last 2.
136 points in 334 games. Pace: 33 points per 82 games
Current status: Bottom 6 NHL forward

Because of the length and full NMC contract of Lucic combined with 2 expansion drafts during that time frame, it goes from a bad contract to arguably the worst as his respective teams had/have to protect him instead of a better player in the expansion draft. The NMC prevents a buyout unless Lucic agrees to it, but even if he did, as he has AT LEAST half his annual pay in signing bonuses every year of the contract (including 75% in the final year), it's essentially buy-out proof even without the NMC.

Okposo: 7 x $6M, NMC first 2 years, limited NTC last 5.
137 points in 271 games. Pace: 41 points per 82 games
Current status: Bottom 6 NHL forward

Okposo is the most productive member of this list, but is currently battling concussion issues with 3 years remaining on his deal with half of his pay the next 2 years coming from signing bonuses. As the final season has no signing bonus, he will likely be bought out of the final year if he's not on LTIR, IMO.

Ladd: 7 x $5.5M, NMC first 2 years, NTC next 2, & limited NTC last 3.
72 points in 181 games. Pace: 33 points per 82 games
Current status: AHL forward

Ladd has another 3 x $5.5M left (with 3 x $3M in signing bonuses) to play in the AHL. Buying the contract out would only save $0.67M/year over those 3 years because of the signing bonuses. Arguably the worst contract on this list alongside Lucic.

Eriksson: 6 x $6M, NMC first 2 years, NTC next 2, & limited NTC last 2.
89 points in 255 games. Pace: 29 points per 82 games
Current status: Bottom 6 NHL forward

Eriksson has been disappointing to say the least but has been fairly steady in his production. Eriksson has 1 more season with a significant signing bonus and then only has a $1M signing bonus in the final year. He will likely be bought out next summer for the $2M savings, IMO.

Nielsen: 6 x $5.25M, NMC first 2 years, limited NTC last 4.
71 points in 290 games. Pace: 20 points per 82 games
Current status: Bottom 6 NHL forward

Nielsen's production dropped off a cliff this season and his contract is bizarre in that the signing bonuses all come at the back end of the contract, making it essentially buyout proof. The back-loaded signing bonuses combined with single-digit production on the worst team in the league make this one of the worst 3 contracts on the list.

Backes: 5 x $6M, NMC first 3 years, limited NTC last 2.
109 points in 256 games. Pace: 35 points per 82 games
Current status: Depth NHL forward

Backes is the oldest member of this list and many predicted it was going to be the worst contract when it was signed, but it hasn't been that bad despite barely being an NHLer at this point. He has a $1M signing bonus and $3M total salary this upcoming season, so it wouldn't surprise me if he gets bought out of the final year to save Anaheim a cool $3M in cap space.

Helm: 5 x $3.85M, NTC first 3 years.
81 points in 254 games. Pace: 26 points per 82 games
Current status: Bottom 6 NHL forward

Helm was a fast, defensively responsible 3rd line centre for the Red Wings but he's no longer fast. He has the lowest cap hit on the list, still has okay 4th line production numbers, and no signing bonuses. Arguably the best long-term contract on this list, which says a lot about how bad this free agent group was.

Honourable mention: Calgary bought Brouwer out 2 years into a 4 x $4.5M contract, so they'll still be paying him $1.5M for another 2 years after this season to play for another team.

That was a great breakdown

and FIRST

[highfive]

I wonder if Louie is going to just fuck the last salary bonus and decide to mutually terminate the contract.

He took in $30 mil already. Sign somewhere else where you want to raise your kids or go back to Sweden and play couple years there. Why bother with it in Vancouver?


I wonder if we’re able to pry josh Anderson away from cbj. He would be solid middle 6 guy. Maybe play with bo too

[BlackV62K2]

Not sure how he can feel good about himself for being one of the highest paid person on the team and to be scratched all the time while these young kids are playing their hearts out to win at much less. Fuck Loui....

[bobbinka]

Comon guys... he's not terminating his contract. do you honestly give a shit what people think if you're getting paid 6 mil to watch hockey from the best seat every night? And if he terminated his contract, how much do you think a team would pay him as a UFA? definitely not 6 mil...

But regardless, my guess is he's gone this year. His NTC becomes a M-NTC, and after his signing bonus is paid he'd be a a little more appealing to other teams who need to add more cap.

[Jmac]

Will teams actually be at the floor, though? This year, every team was above the median $70.35M with New Jersey being the lowest with $8.6M in cap space. Arizona was one of two teams to spend above the cap (Toronto the other). No one was even close to the $60.2M floor.

Who knows what will happen with COVID, of course. Some owners may wish to cut costs if their other businesses are hemorrhaging money.

Then the other issue is cost. Toronto paid a 1st for Carolina to take and buy out the last year of Marleau’s contract. What would it take to get rid of 2 years of Eriksson?

[hotjoint]

first page?