It’s not often that Vancouver Canucks fans hear about the club taking advantage of other teams’ desperation. But at this year’s NHL trade deadline, the Canucks could be the ones profiting.
In particular, the Canucks are in a position to take back distressed assets that other clubs need to move. One such asset is Edmonton Oilers winger Andrew Mangiapane. The Toronto native has been part of ongoing chatter positing the need to move him as part of a cap-clearing effort.
However, the Oilers have been unable to find an interested trading partner. That’s where Vancouver could step in and take advantage of the situation.
As Thomas Drance and Harman Dayal of The Athletic pointed out, the Canucks could look at a savvy trade the New York Islanders pulled off as a template for a Mangiapane trade.
The Islanders landed Ondrej Palat from the New Jersey Devils in exchange for Maxim Tsyplakov and a third-round pick. The draft pick was the sweetener in the deal.
Instead of the trade being a straight-up 1-for-1 swap, the Devils had to include something extra to entice the Islanders to take Palat’s contract off their hands.
That’s what the Canucks could do. They could take Mangiapane and his cap hit off the Oilers’ hands, send back another piece, while potentially wringing a draft pick from the Oilers. Given Edmonton’s situation, the Canucks could get really greedy and ask for a second-round pick.
It would be hard for the Oilers to find a better deal elsewhere. That’s the hard truth of NHL business.
Would Mangiapane Have a Future in Vancouver?
Let’s assume this deal happens. The next question would be: Does Mangiapane have a future in Vancouver?
The short answer is yes. A rebuilding team like the Canucks could certainly benefit from having an erstwhile 30-goal scorer. The lack of pressure in Vancouver could be a major boon to Mangiapane’s game. He could rekindle his scoring touch while playing meaningful minutes on a rebuilding team.
Players often find themselves under intense pressure and scrutiny when they join a contending club. Being in the fishbowl can get to them. But when they move away from prying eyes, things turn around.
That’s what the Canuck would hope could be the case for Mangiapane in Vancouver.
Canucks Would Get Low-Risk Proposition with Mangiapane
All told, Mangiapane is a low-risk proposition for Vancouver. He’s got one more year at $3.6 million. For a rebuilding team like the Canucks, it’s a manageable cap hit. If he’s a really good fit, he could stay long-term with the team.
Mangiapane is still relatively young and could have some decent tread left on his tires. So, it wouldn’t be completely insane to bet on him getting back to his former goal scoring form.
But there’s also one other significant benefit. Assuming that Mangiapane gets back on track, the Canucks could flip him at next year’s deadline. That would make sense if the club felt the 29-year-old wanted to play elsewhere on a contender.
Since Mangiapane will be a UFA after next season, Vancouver might find it more profitable to sell high on Mangiapane while it can.
Canucks Could Benefit from Oilers Desperation at Deadline