The Vancouver Canucks Buyout Former First-Round Pick

The Vancouver Canucks are buying out winger Jake Virtanen. The former 2014 first-round pick had been on leave since this May after a sexual misconduct allegation.

#Canucks have officially begun the buyout process for Jake Virtanen.
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) July 25, 2021

It is understandable that the Canucks are moving on from him because of this. It was also a very disappointing for Virtanen this season on the ice, as he had only five goals in 38 games played. That was far different than his breakout season the year before, as he had 36 points in 69 games and became a very respectable third-line forward for them.

In 317 games with the Canucks over six seasons, Virtanen had 55 goals and 100 total points. He now will be a free agent, but teams will likely pass on him because of the ongoing investigation.

The Canucks will also save $2.5 million from the buyout, so that gives them more money to work. They do have two big RFAs to extend in Elias Petersson and Quinn Hughes.