Canucks have ‘relatively short list’ of untouchables, says Rutherford

With the reality of the situation set in, the Vancouver Canucks look to have a plan of attack as they go headfirst into their rebuild.

Canucks president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford spoke candidly about his team’s situation in an appearance on the 100% Hockey podcast on Thursday, addressing his wants and needs for the Canucks heading into the March 6 deadline and beyond.

While Rutherford has made it clear in the past — particularly after the Quinn Hughes blockbuster trade — that the Canucks are in full rebuild mode, he doubled down on the rhetoric in his appearance, stating that a good chunk of the team is available for the right price and that young assets are the target for the team moving forward.

“We’ll be as active as possible if, in fact, something makes sense for our return. We’re not out looking to just give away players,” Rutherford said, speaking to hosts John Shannon and Daren Millard. “I don’t know how many younger players — mid-20s to younger — are gonna be available that we can acquire, but we’re gonna look at all possibilities. Sticking to that plan of staying younger, getting a group together that can come together over the next couple years as a team.”

Rutherford added that — while they won’t part with guys blindly — there aren’t too many untouchables on the Canucks roster, saying, “There are some, I won’t get into them. I don’t wanna suggest that all our players are available, because they’re not. But I would say the list is relatively short.”

One of those players is defenceman Filip Hronek, who has been one of the team’s steadiest players and “100 per cent” a top guy for the present and future in Rutherford’s eyes.

“He’s been our best player this year. He’s a No. 1 defenceman, he’s a heart-and-soul guy,” he said. “In as bad a year as the Canucks have had, Filip Hronek has been extremely good. He’s been terrific this year.”

He gave a less clear answer about forward Elias Pettersson, who is in the second year of an eight-year, $92 million contract signed during the 2023-24 season.

The 27-year-old Swede has struggled to reproduce offensively at the levels he did in the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons, when he surpassed the point-per-game mark and earned two all-star nods.

However, Rutherford still likes what he’s seen from his No. 1 centreman, and that “Ultimately, when this team gets ready to contend, you need that kind of player.”

Adding that, “He has played better than given credit for this year for the Canucks. I think he’s worked very hard at his two-way game. “A guy in his position, we’d like to see him do more on the offensive side, but to his credit, he’s worked at it. If somebody made a great offer, we’d have to look at it. But it’s not a guy that we feel we have to get out there and shop. He’s a young guy, his offence can still come back — I think it will.”

For now, the Canucks are in asset collection mode. The J.T. Miller and Hughes trades put them in that spot, and the Kiefer Sherwood deal reinforced it. Rutherford said he’s comfortable letting the young guys — either acquired from those trades or brought up through the system — continue to play and adjust to the NHL.

So far, leaning on that youth has led the Canucks to an NHL-worst 18-33-7 record. But that’s all fine and dandy for Rutherford and the Canucks, as they head to a solid 2026 draft where they’re likely to land the equivalent of three first-round picks. Should the Canucks continue on this path, they’ll finish with the worst regular-season record, landing them the first pick of the second round, which, on paper, will be the 32nd pick after the Ottawa Senators were forced to forfeit their first-round selection.

“What we need to do now is get as many young players in here and get established as a young group that’s gonna grow together and want to be here for a long time,” Rutherford said. “That’s our priority right now.”

Though he didn’t state a preference as to which player he’d like to select should they land the top pick, he made it clear that “we’re very confident with that first pick we’re getting in the first round, that we’re getting one of the players that we really like that will make a difference in this franchise over the years.”