Confirmed Trade: [VAN/CGY] Elias Lindholm for Andrei Kuzmenko, Hunter Brzustewicz, Joni Jurmo, 2024 1st, cond. 2024 4th

[GreatSaveEssensa]

The Canucks got the best C on the market and the Canucks didn't value any of the pieces they gave up that highly, that's why they made this deal instead of moving Hoglander for Guentzel, and they freed up $5.5m in cap space that was going to be sitting in the press box to re-sign players.

Calgary was lucky to be able to wait on Kuzmenko, he was a good buy low target. Additionally they are able to give Brzucstewicz as much time as he wants, which Vancouver couldn't.

It's a mostly win-win deal, Vancouver won't sorely miss anything they gave up, they get cap space, they got to improve the roster.

It's definitely Calgary favoured right now, but to act like this deal crippled the Canucks going forward is just not true. Half the pieces were cap dumps and prospects the team wasn't going to sign anyways. A late 1st a cap dump, and a good prospect for a top 6 defensive RHC is pretty standard.

I would counter your claim and say that the Jets got the best centre on the market this year in Sean Monahan. He has been great in Winnipeg.

 

[TS Quint]

Doesn't matter how many spots were open if the player gives up and wants to be traded instead

That's different. I already agreed that if he is a coward the Canucks were right to trade him for anything.

But acting like there are no open spots it stupid.

 

[Mad Dog Tannen]

Wow. Nucks fans getting desperate to cope.

Bad trade for now. Let’s see what happens in the playoffs. It’s why they made the trade. So far hasn’t looked good though.

Has been worse offensively and defensively. He’ll finally be healthy tho. Prove the haters wrong Lindholm.

 

[TS Quint]

It's hilarious how bad Kuzmenko has become in Cunucks fan eyes after putting on a new jersey.

 

[Bring Back Bucky]

Calgary dummied the Canucks on this one.

 

[Mad Dog Tannen]

Calgary dummied the Canucks on this one.

Looks like it so far.

Fun going back to reactions after the trade compared to the messaging now.

'It's a pinch yourself moment if you're a Canucks fan': Vancouver pundits rejoice as Edmonton's rival wins Lindholm trade war

The Vancouver Canucks beat out half a dozen other NHL teams in the trade war for Calgary Flames ace Elias Lindholm.

edmontonjournal.com

Added commentator Black Price: “It’s pretty exciting stuff. It’s a pinch yourself moment if you’re a Canucks fan. From the depths of the last decade to where they find themselves now as a first place team making deals for, if he’s not a first line centre, he’s a second line centre, Elias Lindholm. It’s a pinch yourself moment. I really can’t believe that’s what we’re talking about.”

 

[Yepthatsme]

I hope CGY fans are hockey educated enough to see whats happening.

Kuzmenko is a great player for a rebuild team with no structure and playing in loose games. However, he struggles when the game is tight vs teams playing playoff style hockey. Just take a look at his last 15 games.

He has 0 goals vs Edmonton, jets, LA, Van, Car, Florida, Tbay, LA,

Meanwhile he is feasting in loose games vs Ducks and Sharks.

Great for him!! got him 6+mil a year!

This is the same player though that was healthy scratch when cgy was still in it this year and multiple times with Van.

Calgary isnt competing for the next handful of years though so its a good player to target, i doubt they will be able to flip him next trade deadline though becuase no playoff team or playoff coach will be able to ice him in the playoffs with how he currently plays or has played over the last 2 seasons in the nhl.

I don’t think you’re as hockey educated as you claim to be? He wasn’t healthy scratched, he was fighting an illness. Against Edmonton, he also had 2 assists. Jets he had a point, LA he had 2 points, Florida an assist, Tampa an assist. You listed LA twice when Calgary only played them once as well

Like in those 7 games you listed where he “struggled” against playoff teams, he had 7 points, a better point per game than he has in the rest of his games as a Flame.

A “hockey educated” guy realizes that certain players work well under some systems and terribly under others. Kuzmenko definitely struggled under Vancouver’s new system, and seems to be flourishing under Calgary’s like he did for Vancouver before the new coaching hire. Just because Vancouver is in the playoffs now doesn’t mean their system is the only one conducive for playoff success? Like nobody accuses Kyle Connor of being a liability to a playoff team because he’s atrocious defensively in his career.

 

[Nucklehead Supreme]

Your "good coach" has won nothing yet, though. I think for a coach evaluation you need a little bit more than year and half...

He won a Stanley cup as an assistant coach, I wouldn't say that is nothing, but I don't live in a fantasy world like you.

 

[Nucklehead Supreme]

It's hilarious how bad Kuzmenko has become in Cunucks fan eyes after putting on a new jersey.

It happened long before that for many of us, you just weren't paying attention.

 

[Mad Dog Tannen]

Healthy Lindholms return yesterday against the bottom feeder Coyotes….

0 g
0 a
-2

Nice.


Kuzmenkos last game…..

1g
1a
-1

 

[bandwagonesque]

It's hilarious how bad Kuzmenko has become in Cunucks fan eyes after putting on a new jersey.

Kuzmenko was largely written off by Canucks fans long before the trade as he showed no ability to fit into Tocchet's system and played with no focus or engagement anywhere but the offensive zone. You can go back and look at the threads if you want -- almost no one thought of him as having positive value.

 

[Mad Dog Tannen]

Kuzmenko was largely written off by Canucks fans long before the trade as he showed no ability to fit into Tocchet's system and played with no focus or engagement anywhere but the offensive zone. You can go back and look at the threads if you want -- almost no one thought of him as having positive value.

How’s lindholm been fitting into Tocchets system? Doesn’t look so good.

 

[bandwagonesque]

How’s lindholm been fitting into Tocchets system? Doesn’t look so good.

I don't understand what this has to do with either what I said or the comment to which I was replying.

 

[sting101]

He was playing shut down C cause he wasn’t producing offensively and got moved down. No one was happy about that. To state otherwise is totally revisionist.

The dream at the time of trade was he would be a big part of the top 6. That didn’t pan out. At all.

Hopefully he bounces back from injury and finds a role in the top 6 as expected when they traded for him.

Being in a shut down role probably didn’t help his injury status either.

Anyways - glad to see Kumenko finding his offensive spark again. 19 pts in 24 games with the flames. Looking good. Hopefully he keeps it up, and the flames work on defensive aspects of the game next year after having it gutted.

If the Canucks have been amongst the best defensive teams with Lindholm injured maybe his role as shut down centre needs to be revisited on his return. Don’t want to shake up a good thing! Time to bring the O Elias!

Lindholm is a deadline rental acquisition for a team trying to contend. His value is still very much up in the air due to how much this helps when it matters and that's why Van acquired him. Every year contenders do this sort of thing is this lost on you?

As far as role....Pettersson and Miller are best down the middle. Having the ability to use Lindholm as a 3rd quality C gives the team the opportunity to run 3 lines that can score vs asking Blueger to play above his weight. He didnt even play much for Vegas last year. Vegas just won using Stephenson Eichel Karlsson down the middle and JR last won when they were able to add Bonino as the 3rd C behind Sid and Gino. COL had MacKinnon Kadri Compher TB Point Cirelli Gourde. The point is the best thing they could do was add another quality C and they got one of the 2 best one's available

He doesn't have to be top6 for this to be a big addition. Your lost on this one. Canucks were trying to move salary to get Toffoli or Zucker but it ddn't work out or make sense to do it. You think that it was top6 or bust but Canuck management clearly were trying to do both. As it stands Vancouver has one of the best C ice trios going into playoffs

Kuzmenko was a 5.5m liability that can and has been replaced beside Pettersson for 1.1m by Hoglander. Valuable cap space for the off season and next season to find someone that helps and isn't sitting on the bench. Counting stats in garbage time never tell a true story of a players value. Kuzmenko is a fun guy and i wish him the best. As a purely offensive talent he's quite good but when you need buy in 200ft play and already have scoring stars it was a smart play to move off him and allocate the money better.

 

[Nucklehead Supreme]

How’s lindholm been fitting into Tocchets system? Doesn’t look so good.

Offensively no, defensively he has looked great.

 

[Mad Dog Tannen]

Offensively no, defensively he has looked great.

If the Canucks were just after defense - Adam Henrique would have been a much cheaper 3rd line c shut down option.

Lindholm was minus 2 his first game back - didn’t look great from the period and a half I watched. Hopefully he gets at least the defense going by the time the playoffs start. Realistically hopefully he gets the offence going too - it’s a big part of why they traded for him. Offence and defence/2 way play.

 

[Billy Kvcmu]

I don’t think you’re as hockey educated as you claim to be? He wasn’t healthy scratched, he was fighting an illness. Against Edmonton, he also had 2 assists. Jets he had a point, LA he had 2 points, Florida an assist, Tampa an assist. You listed LA twice when Calgary only played them once as well

Like in those 7 games you listed where he “struggled” against playoff teams, he had 7 points, a better point per game than he has in the rest of his games as a Flame.

A “hockey educated” guy realizes that certain players work well under some systems and terribly under others. Kuzmenko definitely struggled under Vancouver’s new system, and seems to be flourishing under Calgary’s like he did for Vancouver before the new coaching hire. Just because Vancouver is in the playoffs now doesn’t mean their system is the only one conducive for playoff success? Like nobody accuses Kyle Connor of being a liability to a playoff team because he’s atrocious defensively in his career.

He’s not going to flourish when there’s pressure to win

 

[Nucklehead Supreme]

If the Canucks were just after defense - Adam Henrique would have been a much cheaper 3rd line c shut down option.

Lindholm was minus 2 his first game back - didn’t look great from the period and a half I watched. Hopefully he gets at least the defense going by the time the playoffs start. Realistically hopefully he gets the offence going too - it’s a big part of why they traded for him. Offence and defence/2 way play.

Yah but we wanted someone who could play in our top 6, at the time, Lindholm had more value because of his ability at least from the past to score more. I still feel like he can be more offensive, he was obviously injured and the playoffs will really be the true test for whether the trade was worth it or not.

We had a guy in net who is still young, is our 3rd string goalie and was playing his 4th game of the year. Maybe that had more to do with Lindholm going minus 2 than anything else?

Also I don't know what game you were watching I thought he looked good, was shooting the puck well and aggressive in the offensive zone even on a line with guys in Lafferty and Mikheyev who are allergic to offense, he makes our PK a lot better and gives us wicked depth down the middle.

He’s not going to flourish when there’s pressure to win

The fact that he only plays well on teams going nowhere has nothing at all to do with his ability to play hockey in general, or buy into a system that works......................

 

[sting101]

If the Canucks were just after defense - Adam Henrique would have been a much cheaper 3rd line c shut down option.

Lindholm was minus 2 his first game back - didn’t look great from the period and half I watched.

"-2 didnt look great from the period and half I watched"

 

[Mad Dog Tannen]

"-2 didnt look great from the period and half I watched"

was “didn’t look great” too soft of a critique. How bad was he?!

 

[settinguptheplay]

was “didn’t look great” too soft of a critique. How bad was he?!

I can tell your health and well being is tied up in this. So I will offer this. Calgary, as of this time, won the trade. Ego back in check now? Feel better? Good. We will enjoy the playoffs while you enjoy your trade win. I know which one I care about.

 

[Peter Griffin]

The trade has been bad for Vancouver, oh well.

 

[bert]

"-2 didnt look great from the period and half I watched"

classic hf stuff there.

 

[Pip]

Serious question, which playoff team do you see trading for Kuzmenko?

He is offensively capable no doubt....but he is also a defensive liability, doesnt do well in a tightly structured playoff style system, he doesnt forecheck/backcheck.... He was in the doghouse with the Canucks from day 1 as Tochett tried to instill 2 way hockey to the entire team.

His great season with the Canucks came under Bruce Bodreau who pretty much had a pond hockey, beer league , free for all style with no structure.

Cant blame Kuzy tho, he is new to the nhl and 2 way, responsible hockey just isnt his thing.

Not to say that he cant improve that or learn that in the off-season but as of right now, i cant picture any playoff team trading for Kuzy at next year's deadline.

He will need to take this off-season much more seriously tho, as last year spent the summer in Bali and no properly training.

IMO if the Flames want assets for him, they should trade him in the off-season to a non playoff but rebuilding team like the Blackhawks.

Hawks are not expected to be in the playoffs and can probably use some goal scoring and excitement with the fans. Kuzy would be perfect there.

Maybe Ducks and Sharks as well would fit?

Waiting till the trade deadline imo would only make the market much much smaller as there would be very very limited if even any of interested teams wanting Kuzy in playoffs.

Maybe I’m not educated enough but I have a hard time imagining if Kuzmenko is scoring at a good pace next year (say 30 goals) that he is going to have value at the deadline and some contenders will want him.

 

[Kshahdoo]

And he scored a hatty...