A rocky start to the season in Vancouver has done what it always does: turned up the volume on trade talk. This week, discussion on Sportsnet's Canucks Central centred on star centre Elias Pettersson, the $11.6-million forward whose production is again under the microscope.
Analysts reviewing Vancouver's options weighed whether moving a contract of that size is even realistic mid-season, and what a return would need to look like for a team still trying to contend rather than rebuild.
Goaltending drew its own speculation. One proposal making the rounds would see the Canucks pursue St. Louis Blues netminder Jordan Binnington — a Stanley Cup winner whose name surfaces whenever a contender's crease looks uncertain.
For now it remains talk, not transactions. But with the Canucks under pressure to steady their season, every quiet night from their highest-paid players will keep the rumour mill in Vancouver well supplied.
