Vancouver Canucks: How the Ballard Injury Alters Their Trade Deadline Options

A few weeks ago, I wrote that the Vancouver Canucks should be looking to add a depth player or two. They didn't have the salary cap space to add a major player and, frankly, they didn't really need one. 

Fast forward to the days immediately prior to the trade deadline, and while the Canucks are still leading the NHL and running away with the Northwest Division title, they are now positioned to add a major player at the deadline.

What changed is the health of Keith Ballard. Sidelined by a combination of neck and concussion problems, Ballard was recently placed on injured reserve. 

General manager Mike Gillis recently spoke with local sports radio station TEAM 1040, and stated, "He's seeing some specialists. We're hopeful he's going to recover and be a player for us in the playoffs."

If Ballard is out for the remainder of the season as expected, that means the Canucks can exceed the salary cap by his $4.2 million salary. That dramatically raises the available cap space for the Canucks to approximately $4.6 million, according to capgeek.com.

So now that Gillis has some room to play with, what sort of player should he be looking to add?

According to TSN's Bob McKenzie, the Canucks are looking at rugged wingers Steve Ott and Dustin Brown, as well as jumping in as latecomers to the Rick Nash sweepstakes.

Steve Ott is probably the most realistic acquisition. The 6'0", 190-pound forward can play either wing or centre, makes $2.95 million and can be safely counted on to put up double digits in both goals and fights every year.

Ott would add the toughness that every pundit believes Vancouver needs, and has enough skill to play in the top nine.

By all accounts, the Stars are looking to get a bit younger as part of their rebuild, so the 29-year-old Ott is on the market for the right price. 

Dustin Brown is also linked to rumours with Vancouver, after it was leaked that the Kings were actively shopping their captain. But after acquiring Jeff Carter, the Kings publicly backed off soliciting offers for Brown. And Brown also went out and scored a hat trick on Saturday night to go along with his public statements that he is happy as a King. 

So while Brown would be an excellent power forward for the Canucks, I don't think it will happen unless Gillis was willing to gut the roster to land him, which would be rather counter-productive.

Speaking of gutting the roster, the Rick Nash rumours aren't going to amount to anything.

As great as Nash is (when he has NHL-calibre teammates, that is), the Blue Jackets are asking for the moon. To acquire him, the Canucks would have to give up so many roster pieces it would actually weaken their roster. 

Plus, Nash is one of the highest paid players in the NHL at $7.8 million per year with six more years remaining on his contract. That just doesn't work with the salary structure of the Canucks.

The core players for the Canucks either left money on the table and signed extensions at less than market value (Henrik and Daniel Sedin, Alex Burrows, Ryan Kesler, Kevin Bieksa) or actually went to free agency, fielded more lucrative offers from other teams and still signed with the Canucks for lesser money (Sami Salo, Dan Hamhuis, Chris Higgins, etc).

How would it look to bring in a guy who makes significantly more, and even in his best year produces less than your homegrown stars?

Aside from the actual cap hit, that goes against the philosophy and team building that Gillis has fostered.

Unless the Jackets deal Nash for a song, the only reason I can see for Gillis to get involved in the cattle auction in Columbus is to drive up the price to keep Nash out of the hands of the San Jose Sharks or other western powers.

What the Canucks really need to add is more depth on defence. I wrote that they needed to add a defender previously when evaluating the roster prior to the deadline, and that was before Ballard was put on injured reserve. 

The NHL playoffs are a war of attrition. Three of the four teams that made the conference finals last year (San Jose, Vancouver and Tampa Bay) ended up using nine different defenders in the playoffs.

Right now the Canucks have seven defenders on the roster (Dan Hamhuis, Kevin Bieksa, Alex Edler, Sami Salo, Aaron Rome, Andrew Alberts and rookie Chris Tanev), plus Ballard if he returns.

Expect the Canucks to add one or two defenders to the roster. 

Names that have been bandied about on the trade deadline shows, include former Canucks Bryan Allen and Adrian Aucoin, as well as Vancouver native Jason Garrison.

Allen is a solid 6'4", 220 pounds, and the Carolina Hurricanes might be willing to part with him as a cheap rental prior to his becoming a free agent this summer.

Aucoin is currently playing for Phoenix, and also is an upcoming free agent. His addition might seem to be nothing more than injury insurance, but the 38-year-old veteran still plays over 20 minutes a night for the Coyotes and leads their defenders in plus/minus with a plus-12 rating, so he isn't washed up by any means.

Garrison, however, is the rumour that might make the most sense. The 6'2", 220-pound defender plays the right side (a position of weakness in the current lineup for the Canucks), and has a heavy cannon of a shot. He would seem to be a perfect fit as insurance for the inevitable Sami Salo injury, as well as maybe a long-term replacement.

There are a number of factors that might work in the Canucks' favour in terms of trading for Garrison.

First, he plays for Florida, and if the Panthers like to trade with anyone, it is Vancouver. Former Panthers Roberto Luongo, Keith Ballard, Chris Higgins and David Booth currently call Vancouver home. And Ballard, Higgins and Booth were all acquired in the last year-and-half in three different trades.

Second, there is the Vancouver connection, so while Garrison is a free agent this summer, Gillis might feel this gives the Canucks an inside edge on retaining Garrison. This is important, as Gillis rarely deals for purely rental players, preferring instead to acquire players who will be with the team long term.

Third, Garrison might be on the outs in Florida anyways. They have Dmitri Kulikov, Kris Versteeg and newly acquired Wojtek Wolski as restricted free agents this summer, along with several unrestricted free agents. There is only so much cash to go around, and the undrafted Garrison might be the odd man out.

All in all, expect Gillis to be much busier at the trading deadline than originally expected. But don't be surprised if he doesn't bring home a big star despite being linked to Nash and Brown. The Canucks need depth more than anything, even with the Ballard injury.