Has free agency been ruined?

July 1 used to be frenetic. Teams would scramble around, desperate to add potential pieces at the best prices available. It used to be that even the insiders wouldn’t really know which teams were in on the coveted players.

Now, with the negotiation period starting directly after the NHL Entry Draft, teams can talk with players for days leading up to when contracts actually expire (July 1).

So now, though we certainly don’t know all the details, we have a better idea on which players the Canucks could be targeting and those they are certainly not going to be bidding on.

For example, the Canucks have been long been out on the only really big fish in the free agent marketplace, New York Islanders star centre John Tavares.

Here are a couple players that might be Canucks tomorrow.

Jay Beagle, C, 32, 2017-18 cap hit: $1.75 million

Many reports have the Canucks as the frontrunners to make a play for the bottom-six centre who won a Stanley Cup with the Washington Capitals this season.

Apart from the Caps, Beagle has never played for another NHL franchise. It appears though, that Washington is prepared to move on from the heart-and-soul pivot.

Is it a bit confusing as to why the Canucks are apparently sold on Beagle? Sure. The Canucks are missing a top-six centre at the current moment. As it stands, Bo Horvat, Brandon Sutter and Adam Gaudette are the consensus middlemen on the team, with a plethora of other options should the Canucks get desperate, like Sam Gagner, Markus Granlund and Elias Pettersson, if he’s ready.

With Sutter and Gaudette ostensibly taking up the spots on the third and fourth lines, it wouldn’t seem to make sense to push Gaudette to the wing or down to Utica in order to fit in Beagle.

Of course, Canucks coach Travis Green tends to give Sutter a ton of ice time, so does he want to double down on defensive centres in hopes of clogging up the neutral zone every game? If so, Vancouver might be tough to watch when the Horvat line is off the ice.

Chances he’s a Canuck this season: 4/5

https://twitter.com/FriedgeHNIC/status/1013137771626500096

Dhaliwal and Friedman are two extremely trusted names for a good reason. It seems like the Canucks are really going to try and sweeten the pot for Beagle.

Fans should hope that GM Jim Benning doesn’t sign the soon-to-be 33-year-old for more than three years, or more than $3 million. It won’t take very long for that contract to be cumbersome if that’s the case. 

Antoine Roussel, LW, 28, 2017-18 cap hit: $2 million

According to Dhaliwal, this one almost seems like a done deal.

https://twitter.com/DhaliwalSports/status/1012847126500405248

See, all the fun is gone.

Roussel is an interesting target for the Canucks. Benning is clearly hoping that the 28-year-old season’s last year was the exception, not the rule. It was the first time in four years that the Dallas Star didn’t get to at least 25 points, netting only five goals and 12 assists in 73 games.

Roussel turns 29 in November, and it’s fair to ask whether his game started to decline for good last season. He’s always been a high-energy guy who could play on the top lines if needed but was more at home in the bottom-six. He’s also shown some toughness, which the Canucks sorely lacked last year after Derek Dorsett called it quits.

But again, do the Canucks need to be filling depth spots with veterans, especially if they come on four-year contracts? Like Beagle, Roussel’s presence could mean a younger forward is edged down to Utica. Remember that Brock Boeser wasn’t in the Canucks’ starting lineup at the beginning of last season, mostly because the veterans that were brought in via free agency.

Chances he’s a Canuck next season: 5/5

Again, seems a bit like a done deal. The native of Roubaix, France will be fun to watch as a Canuck next year, but it needs to be on a sensible contract. Anything more than three years would be a mistake, as Roussel is coming of his worst-ever season.

Tobias Rieder, C, 25, 2017-18 cap hit: $2.25 million

This is the kind of signing that would make a bit more sense for the Canucks, provided they could get the German winger to sign for close to what he raked in last season.

Rieder is extremely fast, and though he only had 25 points in 78 games, his previous output (34 points in 2016-17) and his age indicate that he might be a prime candidate for a bounce-back season.

When he’s at his best, Rieder is a switchblade of sorts, able to play both centre and the wing, and suited for anywhere in the lineup. If other lines aren’t scoring, he could be brought up to retrieve pucks for Boeser and Horvat on the first line, enabling the Canucks to deploy Sven Baertschi elsewhere.

He also has the necessary penalty killing skills and the experience starting shifts in the defensive zone to be a natural fit alongside Sutter.

Chances he’s a Canuck next season: 2/5

There’s a chance, to be sure. But if he’s coveted, he can probably find teams that are closer to being a contender than the Canucks.

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