The club already has plenty of bodies under contract set to battle for jobs, but can't pass up opportunity to find players that can help
With the news this week that former Vancouver Canucks centre Brandon Sutter will attempt to resume his National Hockey League career on a pro tryout in Edmonton, it begs the question: should the Canucks be looking to add to their training camp roster via the pro tryout route?
The answer is an unequivocal 'Yes'. There is no cost or downside to the organization to offer a spot to a motivated veteran looking to stay in the NHL. The Canucks can't pass up the opportunity to find a player that has perhaps slipped through the cracks this summer and is still looking for NHL employment.
Make no mistake, PTO candidates are long-shots to rise through the depth chart and earn a contract. Veteran defenseman Danny DeKeyser came to Canucks camp last year in Whistler and, while he didn't look out of place, he also didn't do enough to supplant any of the players under contract. As a result, he was released early in the preseason. But two years ago in Abbotsford, journeyman Alex Chiasson proved he still had what it takes to compete -- and produce -- in the NHL. He ended up scoring 13 goals in 67 games for the Canucks after accepting his tryout offer on the eve of training camp.
So there is recent history with this organization. And let's be honest, the Canucks should still be looking at every avenue to upgrade a roster that fell well short of expectations last season. By all means, if they can find a player without a contract that wants to take his best shot at making this hockey club, the Canucks should be open to the idea.
Perhaps they can find someone that can win them face-offs or kill penalties or play with the tenacity Rick Tocchet wants from his bottom six forward group. Players like Jujhar Khaira, Zach Aston-Reese, Danton Heinen, Noah Gregor and even old friend Tyler Motte are all still without deals for next season. Now, some of them may be able to ink contracts before training camps open, but others may be left without a place to play.
Again, outside of a track suit and a few meals, there are virtually no costs to the hockey club to extend an invitation to a player on a tryout. If nothing else, it sends a message to the incumbents that the organization is still serious about finding guys that can help. In theory, that should only serve to up the battle level in camp drills and into the preseason.
Plus, with veteran quotas for preseason games, an extra body in camp provides options for the coaching staff to fill out exhibition line-ups. That, in turn, can reduce the workload for roster locks who don't need many tune-up games before playing for keeps on October 11th.
The downside comes if a PTO candidate is successful. That's where the cap-strapped Canucks run into problems. But that's the kind of problem this team should want -- finding cheap labour with no leverage looking to extend or revitalize an NHL career. Oh sure, they already need to shed salary to get cap compliant ahead of opening night and would have to find a way to squeeze another salary onto the books. But if a guy is good enough to play, the Canucks would surely find a way to make it happen.
The Canucks have nothing to lose and perhaps something to gain by offering PTO spots before camp convenes in Victoria on September 21st. It'll be a good test for club's pro scouting department to see if it can identify a player -- or players -- that is still out there on the open market that could come in and contribute.