- Rick Dhaliwal says the Canucks called Seattle about center Shane Wright
- The Kraken want Zeev Buium or Tom Willander back, a price Vancouver won’t pay
- Read below for where the Wright trade talks stand and why the Canucks are staying patient
The Canucks kicked the tires on Shane Wright. Then they saw the price tag.
Vancouver called Seattle about the Kraken center, Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK reported on the Oilers Now podcast. What Seattle wants back is the holdup. Dhaliwal said the Kraken asked for either Zeev Buium or Tom Willander, and that is a price the Canucks won’t pay.
Both blueliners are core pieces of Vancouver’s rebuild. Buium and Willander are young, cheap, and still on entry-level deals. Handing one over for a center coming off a down year is a hard sell in that front office.
Here’s what Wright looks like when he’s rolling:
Wright went fourth overall in 2022 and carried real hype into the league. His second season went the wrong way. He put up 12 goals and 27 points in 74 games after a 44-point rookie year.
He’s still only 22 and five years from unrestricted free agency. That control is exactly why Seattle is asking big.
The Kraken already agreed to move Wright this summer after he requested a trade, per Elliotte Friedman. Jason Botterill isn’t getting pressured into a weak return, and he’s holding the line on price.
Take a look at the upside, like this top-corner snipe against Toronto:
New Canucks GM Ryan Johnson isn’t in a hurry. He’s said any move he makes has to bring back real value, not clear money. That logic cuts both ways, and he’s not about to overpay for a bounce-back bet.
If Seattle drops its ask, Johnson can circle back. As it stands, the two sides are nowhere close.
