3 Moves The Vancouver Canucks Need To Make This Summer

The Vancouver Canucks had a whirlwind of a season this year. They were hit the hardest by COVID-19, as more than 20 players would get the virus and the team would not play for almost a month. They would go on to finish last in the North Division, but there is hope for improvement next season. They have a solid group of young players and have had recent playoff success. However, they are a team who needs be very active this off-season.

Here are three moves that they should make this summer.

Extend RFAs Elias Petersson and Quinn Hughes: Re-signing Petersson and Hughes are the most important tasks going into this off-season. Petersson has been marvelous since joining the Canucks and is their more offensively gifted center. Even though he missed a lot of time this season, he still was productive when he played. Hughes is a top-of-the-line offensive defenseman who is only three points away from 100 career points. Keep in mind, he's only played in 129 games. With all of this stated, these two need to be in Vancouver for many years to come.

Trade Nate Schmidt: With Nate Schmidt wanting out of Vancouver, the Canucks should work quickly to trade him. It is hard trading away a top-four defenseman, but if they can net a nice return for him, it will help ease the pain. Schmidt also struggled fitting into Vancouver's system this year, as his statistics were noticeably lower. He also carries a $5.95 cap hit, so trading him would give the Canucks more financial flexibility.

Buyout At Least One Player: There is no secret that Jim Benning has made some questionable free agent signings. They have far too many bottom-six players who are significantly overpaid. It has been established that the Canucks may use buyouts this summer, too. There are plenty of worthy candidates, such as Loui Eriksson, Antoine Roussel and Jay Beagle. Frank Seravalli also sees Jake Virtanen as a buyout candidate because of his ongoing legal trouble.