6 Offseason Free-Agent Landing Spots for Elias Lindholm
It was tough to watch the Vancouver Canucks fall in Game 7 against the Edmonton Oilers, but what might be difficult to witness is how their big deadline acquisition, Elias Lindholm, could sign somewhere else come July 1.
The Canucks have some questions to address in the offseason and now that they've gotten a taste of being a contender again, that means there are tough decisions ahead.
Elias Pettersson's big extension with an $11.6 million cap hit begins next season, defenseman Filip Hronek is a restricted free agent and looking at a big raise of his own and then there's potential unrestricted free agent Nikita Zadorov heading to free agency as well. They've also got Oliver Ekman-Larsson's buyout putting more than $2.3 million in dead money on their cap.
All of these guys are going to get paid by someone. And given the price paid for Lindholm, letting him walk might be tough to watch, especially since they're lacking in top-end depth. They don't have to see him go, but other teams will be eager to strike given the opportunity.
So where might Lindholm be headed next? We examine a few situations where his two-way talents might make a lot of sense.
Vancouver Canucks
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When the Canucks made the deal with Calgary to acquire Lindholm, the price they paid wasn't exactly a crusher considering Vancouver was going for it with a chance at a Stanley Cup.
If the 29-year-old walks away in free agency, though, it will make that trade a lot harder to swallow after an early postseason exit.
Lindholm's regular-season finish with Vancouver wasn't eye-popping with 12 points in 26 games, but his 10 points in 13 playoff games was tied for third best on the team with Quinn Hughes and just behind J.T. Miller and Brock Boeser.
The end result of the postseason will taint the view of everyone's performances (apart from Boeser), but Lindholm showed how valuable he can be to Vancouver.
With the financial future potentially being an issue for the Canucks given the other players who will hit free agency this summer (Filip Hronek is RFA; Nikita Zadorov is UFA) and other lineup questions they'll seek to address, losing Lindholm would mean trying to find another player like that to replace him.
The easiest thing to do is re-sign him, although figuring out the money will be the biggest issue, particularly if they want to retain Hronek and Zadorov.
Is the grass greener on the other side for GM Patrik Allvin or do they have things going in the right direction with Lindholm? It's a big question to answer.
Chicago Blackhawks
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It's not a rule that we have to mention Chicago for every single potential high-end free agent, but they've got Connor Bedard becoming a superstar and a boatload of salary-cap space.
They're going to need to surround the 18-year-old and the other young prospects with solid veterans who can get them back to the playoffs, and Lindholm checks a lot of boxes for what they need.
He can score goals and pile up points, and he's an outstanding defender up front. Chicago is going to need more than a few forwards who can do both things well if they're going to make big strides toward getting back to the playoffs.
In Lindholm's case, he's been a Selke Trophy-quality player in the recent past and while the playoff performance might not excite a fanbase, a fresh start with a team on the rise could go a long way.
Having a center grouping of Bedard, Lindholm and Jason Dickinson might not light up everyone's eyes, but it will make opposing teams deeply upset at having to deal with them game in and game out with the mix of skill, speed and ability to frustrate.
Utah Hockey Club
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This is an obvious team to discuss as well, but unlike Chicago, Utah already has a lot of its key young stars in place. With Clayton Keller, Logan Cooley, Matias Maccelli and Dylan Guenther, it has a load of superb talent.
An area they could stand to improve in a big way is at center, though, and adding Lindholm to the roster would get Utah into a position where making the playoffs becomes less of a pipe dream and more of a realistic possibility.
You could argue Utah doesn't have the center position figured out yet. Cooley is shaping up to be a very good player and will slot in as their No. 1 guy for the future, but behind him, it's not ideal.
No offense to Alex Kerfoot and Nick Bjugstad, but rolling them out as a No. 1 or No. 2 center will not help them challenge for the playoffs. Adding Lindholm would change that conversation and make Utah instantly that much deeper.
We know the franchise ownership wants to contend as soon as possible, and we know it's going to spend money to do it and we know it's got a lot of cap space to work with.
If nothing else, Utah is the real wild card of the summer. But spending to add Lindholm would settle some of its lineup issues.
Boston Bruins
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In the time leading up to the trade deadline and when Calgary traded Lindholm to Vancouver, the main team that got talked up as an interested party for his services were the Boston Bruins.
Now that all it takes is money and term to add the Swede, it would make sense for the Bruins to circle back on July 1.
Yes, Boston has some serious considerations to make with some of its own players (Jake DeBrusk, Linus Ullmark and Jeremy Swayman) and a lineup to build with roughly $20 million in cap space to work around next season.
However, the Bruins are also a team meant to contend for the Stanley Cup and while they got solid play from Charlie Coyle, Pavel Zacha and rookie Matthew Poitras (before he was injured), center is a position that needs a little more.
How Lindholm is able to perform well both offensively and defensively makes him an ideal fit with Boston, but figuring out how best to make a potential contract fit there will require sacrifice (trading Ullmark?) and creativity.
San Jose Sharks
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We're going to talk about San Jose and Lindholm and be fully upfront about how the likelihood of this being a match is pretty low for one obvious reason: The Sharks aren't in a position to win right now and despite having a load of cap space, adding Lindholm doesn't make a ton of sense.
However, knowing they're going to draft Macklin Celebrini with the first pick and will have Logan Couture back and healthy and they'll also have 2023 first-round pick Will Smith in the mix soon as well, adding Lindholm to that group is something to consider.
The Sharks' longest contract commitments for the next few seasons are to Couture (three years) and defensemen Marc-Edouard Vlasic and Mario Ferraro (two years). They're not weighed down by anyone in a harsh way and they're rebuilding.
Lindholm would help them bridge the gap between the rough few seasons to come and when they're looking to get into the playoff mix. How he would perform by that point would be a big question to consider along with whether his cap hit would be an issue by then, too.
Carolina Hurricanes
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You've seen this movie before, but with how well Lindholm performed after he was dealt from Carolina, why not go for a reunion?
The fit makes sense because the way he plays now is an ideal fit with the Hurricanes and they could use the help.
Sebastian Aho is a great No. 1 center and Jordan Staal and Jack Drury have been superb as defenders in the lower half of the lineup, but they could stand to have an outstanding No. 2 center.
Yes, they've got Evgeny Kuznetsov, but real life is not a video game and that's probably not going to work out ideally.
Yes, Carolina has more than a few big decisions looming. Will it re-sign Jake Guentzel? How about Brett Pesce? Brady Skjei? Teuvo Teravainen? Frederik Andersen?
It's a lot to deal with for general manager Don Waddell, but ensuring the Hurricanes can both generate goals and defend in an elite way will be vital, and Lindholm can do that for them…and they should know that as well as anyone else by now.
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