The Vancouver Canucks have their eyes on a defenceman in the Eastern Conference.
The club likes left-handed Ivan Provorov from the Columbus Blue Jackets, per CHEK’s Rick Dhaliwal.
“We know the Canucks like Bowen Byram, but they also like Ivan Provorov out of Columbus,” said Dhaliwal today.
Provorov has 11 points in 32 games so far this season and is playing an average of 23:30 per night. He’s firmly a top-four option and would help provide more puck-moving ability among the Canucks’ blue line group.
His career-high in points is 41, achieved back during the 2017-18 season. He’s 6-foot-1 and weighs more than 210 pounds, giving him the type of size that teams covet on their backend.
The 27-year-old is in the final year of a contract which counts for $6.75 million against the cap. He’ll be an unrestricted free agent on July 1.
Last season, the Canucks traded for two pending unrestricted free agents in Nikita Zadorov and Elias Lindholm and then watched them walk for nothing when summer came around.
The Blue Jackets are in last place in their division and 25th overall in the NHL. They’re already out of the playoff race and will likely be willing sellers. They’d rather get some sort of asset in return instead of potentially letting Provorov walk during the summer. They also have over $25 million in cap space, meaning they could easily retain some of the player’s contract to facilitate a deal.
However, some recent reports have suggested the defenceman is open to re-signing in Ohio. If he does agree to a new deal with the team, the Canucks will have to turn elsewhere.
The NHL’s roster freeze begins on Friday, so any trades not completed before that date will need to wait. There has been increasing chatter that the Canucks are close to making a deal and could get something over the finish line soon.