The Vancouver Canucks‘ offseason work may very well be complete. As we showed earlier this week, they’ve now got a full lineup and could ice a team if the season started tomorrow. But that doesn’t mean we’ve packed up for the offseason and have stopped paying attention to the league as a whole.
With that, we present you six notable NHL free agents who have yet to find their new home.
Jack Roslovic
When it comes to remaining free agents that might be a fit for the Canucks, Roslovic might be the only name on this list who fits that billing. After all, the Canucks haven’t tried to hide the fact that they’d like to add a top six centre to the mix. Is Roslovic a perfect player for them? No, not necessarily.
But he is a right-handed centre who posted a 54% success rate in the faceoff dot last season. Faceoffs are certainly an area the Canucks could use some help in. Plus, Roslovic scored 22 goals last season, the second time in his career that he’s achieved that feat. The fact that Roslovic is still available almost a week after free agency opened suggests that perhaps he hasn’t received the type of offers he was hoping for, and that he could be had at a price that would have originally be thought too low. A Pius Suter-type contract, if you will.
The Canucks have been rumoured to be interested in Roslovic in the past, so this might be one to keep an eye on.
Matt Grzelyck
It might be nice for the Canucks that Matt Grzelyck is still available if they didn’t have a defence corps that is essentially set in stone, but that’s not the reality we’re living in. Grzelyck remains without a home as we head into week two of free agency, and that’s a bit surprising, given that he tallied a career-high 40 points last season.
Where are the LA Kings when you need them?!
Victor Olofsson
A one-dimensional scorer who can be effective on the power play, Victor Olofsson has yet to find a new home after a decent season with the Vegas Golden Knights in which he potted 15 goals. The real problem with Olofsson is that he’s not scoring like he used to, and doesn’t bring much at all when he’s not scoring.
As we’re finding out, that can be a recipe for disaster when you hit free agency. That being said, it’d be downright hard to believe that a team won’t take a flyer on a 29-year-old who is two seasons removed from scoring 28 goals. Will that team be the Canucks? Almost certainly not, thanks to the glut of wingers the organization currently possesses.
Jeff Skinner
Jeff Skinner’s one-year “show me” deal with the Edmonton Oilers, which seemed to be aimed at helping him find a long term pay day and a nice pay day this free agency, went more poorly than anyone could have thought. After scoring 33, 35, and 24 goals with the Sabres over the past three seasons — not to mention a 40 goal in 2018-19 — Skinner was anticipated to pot a ton of goals playing alongside Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.
For whatever reason, that didn’t happen, and now Skinner finds himself without an NHL home of any sort. At 33, he’s not exactly “old” but he is in a bit of a tough spot, and it will be interesting to see how this plays out for him.
Michael Carcone
Believe it or not, Michael Carcone is “notable” for more reasons than just “used to be in the Canucks’ organization”. Carcone scored 21 goals as a member of the Arizona Coyotes in 2023-24, and 19 points through 53 games with Utah last season. He’s presumably on the hunt for a one-way deal, and preferably one with some sort of term. Will he get it?
Tyler Motte
Tyler Motte is a fan favourite among Canucks fans, and if the Canucks didn’t have so many wingers, we might be pounding the table for the Canucks to bring him back. The 30-year-old tallied nine points in each of his last two seasons and remains unsigned.
