A Promising Future Ahead for a Young NHL Defenseman What are the Vancouver Canucks going to do with feuding forwards Elias Pettersson and J.T. Miller? Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman shared that if one of the two is going to be dealt, the Canucks are looking for a center in return: As mentioned in my latest article surrounding the Canucks and a potential trade with the New York Islanders [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/new-york-islanders/], Vancouver does have interest in pending unrestricted free agent forward Brock Nelson, per industry sources, amongst other members of the Blue & Orange. The belief is that any trade with the Islanders surrounding Pettersson would involve pending restricted free-agent defenseman Noah Dobson, and maybe they'd want Nelson in that deal, too. We are not sure if Dobson is even on the table at this point in time. But if Nelson plans to test free agency this summer, it would be wise for the Islanders to move Nelson for assets, a combination of a first-round pick and prospects. While the Canucks are interested in Nelson, I was told that Vancouver isn't too fond of acquiring No. 29 as a rental. Nelson as a rental would make more sense if the Canucks were no doubt making the playoffs and looking for a weapon for a deep playoff run. However, they currently hold just a one-point lead over the Calgary Flames for the second wild-card spot but have struggled, going 3-4-3 over their last 10 games. Nelson also has a 16-team modified no-trade clause, and one would expect that all of Canada will be on that. That doesn't mean he wouldn't go. But with teams like the Dallas Stars and his hometown Minnesota Wild likley to show interest, two teams not believed to not be on his no-trade list, those are certainly destinations where we could see Nelson sign an extension. We'll see how this all plays out, but Nelson going to Vancouver in a potential deal would be a shock. Nelson is scoreless in 16 straight games and has 10 goals and 11 assists for 21 points in 40 games.
