Article content continued
What to do with Jake Virtanen?
The winger’s game has some holes, but he reminded us of one thing this season: He can score goals.
Shotgun Jake scored 18 goals during the regular season while seeing time on the second power-play unit, occasionally spotting in on Elias Pettersson’s wing. And when he played with Pettersson, the Swedish centre’s possession numbers were outstanding.
But Virtanen also struggled with consistency and spent much of the playoffs on Jay Beagle’s wing. Still, Virtanen is due for a raise and he has arbitration rights, which is a useful hammer for him.
He’s also a fan favourite, so it’s difficult to imagine him being flipped somewhere else. But with the Canucks’ tight cap setup, retaining him could have consequences for how the remainder of the team is constructed.
Prioritizing free agents
Beyond Markstrom and Virtanen, there are other free agents to be sorted through.
Chris Tanev and Tyler Toffoli are both eligible for unrestricted free agency. Toffoli was a key acquisition at the trade deadline and while he struggled with a foot injury in the playoffs, he brings a scoring pedigree that makes the Canucks’ top lines better.
Like Markstrom, Toffoli is an expensive player. Re-signing him will have an impact on who else stays or goes.
Tanev will have an interesting case in free agency. He turns 31 in December and isn’t the defensive force he once was. That said, playing with rookie Quinn Hughes had him chasing the play far less than he used to, and it’s obvious what a difference that made for his health, as this was the first NHL season in which he didn’t miss a game. (Of course, he would have missed a game had the season not been paused in mid-March due to the COVID-19 outbreak.)
