The Vancouver Canucks completed one of the most-talked-about NHL trades on Wednesday afternoon, ending speculation about Tyler Myers’ future.
Earlier this week, speculation was rampant regarding the veteran blueliner weighing his options on a deal to the Detroit Red Wings. Myers, who has a full no-movement clause, balked at the deal.
Instead, the 36-year-old opted to head to the Dallas Stars. Meanwhile, the Canucks fleeced the Stars in one of today’s NHL trades, by getting a 2027 second-round pick and a 2029 fourth-rounder.
On the surface, the price wouldn’t seem overly onerous. The Stars’ figure to be contenders for the foreseeable future. So, sending a second-rounder in next year’s draft would seem more like a third-round pick. Meanwhile, the 2029 pick is so far into the future that it doesn’t even compute at this point.
But when looking at the broader scheme of things, a veteran defenseman with little offense and questionable defense at times shouldn’t fetch two decent draft picks.
Of course, the argument for the price tag is that the Canucks retained 50% of Myers’ cap hit. And that’s what makes this one of the most interesting NHL trades this season. The lack of serviceable NHL defensemen on the market artificially drives up the price for someone like Myers.
All told, the Canucks pulled off a savvy trade, capitalizing on the Stars’ need to add depth at a reasonable price.
Canucks Continue to Cash in on NHL Trades
The Canucks continue to cash in on the NHL trades they’ve made this season. The return on the Quinn Hughes trade was fantastic. Vancouver got the equivalent of four first-round picks.
Additionally, the Kiefer Sherwood trade, while not delivering the anticipated return, still netted two second-round picks as part of this year’s NHL trades.
Now, the Tyler Myers deal yields an extra two draft picks. At this point, the Canucks can hold onto the picks or use them as part of larger deals moving forward. While the plan is to rebuild, one can’t help but wonder if all those draft picks could come in handy as part of a more aggressive deal.
Stars Get Myers for One More Season
Perhaps the biggest benefit of this deal is getting Myers with one more year left on his contract. Other NHL trades generally involve players on expiring deals. That wasn’t the case for Myers and the Stars.
So, the added premium likely boils down to the retention and the additional year on Myers’ contract. It’s still hard to envision the Stars sending two picks to the Canucks for Myers. He’s a third-pairing blueliner on a deep team like Dallas.
That’s why this will be one of the NHL trades that desperate contenders make. The Stars had to do something to keep up with the Joneses in the Central Division. The Minnesota Wild and Colorado Avalanche have added to their depth. That underscores why the Stars could sit by idly and wait for the deadline to pass.
It remains unclear if the Stars have another deal up their sleeves. They have about $5 million in cap space to play. That’s enough room to add some other depth pieces.
NHL Trades: Canucks Fleece Stars Deal for Veteran D-Man