The Vancouver Canucks had a big offseason with lots of change after their third most successful season in terms of points in franchise history. The team saw Elias Lindholm, Nikita Zadorov, Ian Cole, Sam Lafferty, Ilya Mikheyev, Vasily Podkolzin and Casey DeSmith. But it sounds like they were closer than expected to bringing back the fan favourite on that list.
Chek TV’s Rick Dhaliwal appeared on Sportsnet 650’s Halford and Brough on Friday morning and shared some details on how the contract negotiations between Zadorov’s camp and the Canucks went this offseason. To preface this, Zadorov was on a podcast saying that he wanted to stay in Vancouver, but by the end of it, it just didn’t work out, and he felt a little bit disrespected.
“Zadorov and agent Dan Milstein 100% wanted to re-sign in Vancouver, so contract talks started before the playoffs. The Canucks made an offer of four years at $4.6 million per year. I believe Zadorov was looking for that fifth year. Term was the big issue, not money. [The] Canucks wouldn’t budge on four years. Milstein was pushing hard for that fifth year. He wasn’t even negotiating money; it was all about that fifth year. He was negotiating term, not money. This is, again, before the playoffs. The Canucks would not go to that fifth year.
“So they said, alright, playoffs are starting, we’re not there, let’s restart talks after the playoffs. Fast forward [to] after the playoffs, and we’re into, guess what? The NHL draft and July 1st. And guess what? The Canucks still haven’t signed Zadorov. Clearly, at that time, the Canucks number one target was Jake Guentzel. Guentzel’s rights were being traded by the Hurricanes, a bunch of teams, including Vancouver, were in on him. I believe Zadorov never felt that he was their number one guy or the priority.
“At the end, the Canucks did make an offer with the fifth year to Zadorov. But it was too late, and it was rejected. So, when they started targeting Guentzel and others, that’s where you get [the], ‘I felt disrespected’ comment, most likely. After everything I’ve gathered this week, it’s from that. So the Canucks can’t blame anyone but themselves. Zadorov and Milstein tried their best to stay. This was fumbled at the end, this wasn’t fumbled at the beginning.”
The Canucks acquired Zadorov on November 30 of the 2023-24 season in exchange for a 2026 third-round pick and a 2024 fifth-round pick, originally from the Chicago Blackhawks acquired in the Anthony Beauvillier deal.
Canucks head coach [Rick Tocchet] and general manager [Patrik Allvin] both had high praise for Zadorov once the club acquired him.
“We’re really excited,” said Tocchet. “He’s a big guy, he can skate and he can shoot. We talked to him today an hour before the game, [he’s] really excited to come here. Our environment can really help him.”
“Nikita is a big, strong and mobile two-way defenseman who will bring more physicality to our backend,” Allvin added. “We really like his size and reach and his addition to our blue line gives us more depth and better options moving forward.”
In 54 games with the Canucks, he scored 5 goals, 9 assists for 14 points with a plus-six rating, 102 penalty minutes and 124 hits. Come playoff time, the Russian defenceman exploded offensively, scoring four goals and eight points in 13 playoff games. His efforts were good enough for fifth on the team in points, all while finishing second on the team in hits and third in blocked shots.
The 6’6″ 248-lb blueliner became a fan favourite here in Vancouver. Whether it was his timely goals in the playoffs, the energizing hits, or the hilarious quotes in the media, by season’s end, the whole fanbase wanted Zadorov to ink a contract that kept him in Vancouver for years to come. However, the former first-round pick outpriced himself in Vancouver, as he went on to sign a six-year, $30 million contract with the Boston Bruins, paying him $5 million annually.
