Canucks swing eye-opening trade with Avalanche before season opener
Later this week, the Vancouver Canucks and Colorado Avalanche will begin their regular season journeys. Before that begins, the two teams struck a deal on Sunday. In a surprising decision, the Avalanche sent defenseman Erik Brannstrom to the Vancouver Canucks for Tucker Poolman and a 2025 fourth-round pick. The Canucks’ official account posted the full trade details on their X, formerly Twitter, account.
“General Manager Patrik Allvin announced today that the #Canucks have acquired D Erik Brannstrom from the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for Tucker Poolman (20% salary retained) and a fourth-round pick in the 2025 NHL Entry Draft,” reported the organization.
The most surprising aspect of the deal? Colorado trading away Brannstrom after signing him as a free agent just a couple of months ago. The former first-round pick of the Ottawa Senators spent the first six seasons of his career north of the border. Now, he’ll return to Canadian soil, this time to Vancouver. Even though he hasn’t lived up to the first-round billing, the Swedish international could be a good future piece for the Canucks. For now though, this deal might be more about the current impact this has for the Canucks than the long-term look.
Canucks, Avalanche look to make playoffs in Western Conference
Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images
After the trade was processed, the Canucks waived Brannstrom with the purpose of reassigning him to AHL affiliate Abbotsford. He’s still young at 25 years old, and his pedigree as a first-round pick likely warrants this shot as well. He had 20 points (three goals, 17 assists) in 76 games played with the Senators last season, an improvement on his 2022/23 season in which he notched 18 points (two goals and 16 assists). These incremental improvements throughout his time in Ottawa was the norm for Brannstrom. Maybe more time in the minors with the Canucks’ player development staff will help him unlock the next stage of his career.
Shedding Poolman’s contract is the biggest part of this deal for Vancouver, who also had to attach a fourth rounder to get a youngster like Brannstrom back in return. The Canucks shed Poolman’s $2.5 million cap hit, and that opens up some in-season maneuverability with the cap. That’s never a bad thing, especially if the team is in the playoff hunt. The ability to add players to round out their depth, as well as having an open Long Term Injury Reserve (LTIR) spot, is tremendously useful.
As for the Avalanche, they look to get back to the Stanley Cup Final after winning it a couple years ago. Most of that team’s core, such as center Nathan MacKinnon and defenseman Cale Makar, is still in the Mile High City. Gaining a fourth rounder in next year’s draft is a nice little pickup that could help them in a few different ways. At this point, it’s all about the little moves that can help a contender now and in the long term. This is a deal that could help the Avs in ways not yet seen.
The post Canucks swing eye-opening trade with Avalanche before season opener appeared first on ClutchPoints.
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