Thank you for tuning into Last Word on Hockey. In this edition of NHL Rumours, the discussion will focus on the Vancouver Canucks efforts to keep an impending unrestricted free agent in town. While the chatter has centred on a trade, Vancouver could be looking to change course.
NHL Rumours: Vancouver Canucks Made Offer to Kiefer Sherwood, but Sides Remain Apart
Rumour: During the January 3 edition of Saturday Headlines, insider Elliotte Friedman discussed the offer the Canucks made to impending UFA Kiefer Sherwood. However, the offer was well below Sherwood’s camp’s expectations, leaving both sides still far apart.
Analysis: NHL rumours suggesting the Canucks want to keep Sherwood are somewhat surprising. The chatter for the last couple of months has been the team’s plans to move out all impending UFAs.
So, the sudden change of heart seems surprising. But then again, the Canucks may believe that Sherwood’s season is not an outlier amid a rash of injuries. That’s why the club could be keen on keeping the 30-year-old in the fold beyond this season.
Unfortunately for Vancouver, it seems NHL rumours surrounding Sherwood’s potential trade will remain churning, based on Friedman’s comments:
“The Canucks did make a new offer to Sherwood this week. I still think there’s a sizeable gap here. I don’t have a timeline for when anything’s going to occur in terms of a trade or anything like that. But both sides did talk this week. I still think, however, there’s a gap in where Sherwood would like to be and what the Canucks are willing to do.”
So, it seems that NHL rumours involving a Kiefer Sherwood trade are not going away anytime soon. The Canucks’ last-ditch effort to keep Sherwood in the fold may ultimately prove unsuccessful, prompting a trade.
Price Reportedly High on Sherwood
NHL Rumours surrounding the Canucks trade have suggested the asking price is quite high. According to chatter, the price includes a first-round pick and a prospect.
That’s a steep price for Sherwood, regardless of his ongoing career season. Sherwood is on pace to obliterate his career-high in goals and points. Nevertheless, his career numbers suggest this season’s totals could be an outlier instead of a breakthrough.
Nevertheless, the NHL rumours suggesting a Sherwood trade could fall flat based on Friedman’s comments. Here’s why.
Sherwood would like a hefty raise from his current $1.5 million cap hit. For what he brings to the table, that cap hit is fantastic. But as Ben Kuzma of The Province noted, Sherwood’s camp could be looking to triple his current cap hit.
That would put Sherwood, predominantly a bottom-six forward on a deep contending club, at around $4.5 million to $5 per season. That’s something very few contenders could stomach.
The Dallas Stars, for instance, a team linked to Sherwood according to NHL rumours, just doesn’t have the cap space. They have a need for someone like him, but lack the assets (a 2026 first-rounder) and the cap space to add a contract like that.
So, it seems that the Canucks are cognisant of the fact that trading Sherwood won’t be easy. Keeping him won’t either. That’s why these NHL rumours could end with Sherwood hitting the market unless the Canucks take whatever they can get.
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