- Bruce Garrioch reports a group of teams want Canucks winger Jake DeBrusk, with Ottawa among them
- DeBrusk has two years down on a seven-year, $38.5M deal and a full no-move clause for one more season
- Read below for what the Senators are working with and why Vancouver might sell low
Jake DeBrusk might not be a Canuck much longer.
Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia reports that a group of teams have checked in on the Vancouver winger, and the Ottawa Senators are believed to be near the front of the line. Two league sources told Garrioch the interest is real as the Canucks weigh a summer move.
He’s been floating in trade talk since before the March deadline. Two seasons in Vancouver haven’t gone the way either side pictured, and a rebuilding team carrying his contract makes him an obvious name to move.
Money is the catch. DeBrusk is two years into a seven-year, $38.5 million deal that carries a $5.5 million cap hit. Any team trading for him is betting on a bounce-back.
The goals are still there, at least on paper. DeBrusk put up 23 goals and 19 assists in 81 games this season. The trouble is where they came from. Nineteen of those goals landed on the power play, which leaves just four at even strength.
Catch DeBrusk bury two, including the overtime winner, against the Kings in April:
Ottawa fits what the Senators have been chasing. They’ve spent the offseason looking for a top-six winger and have close to $17 million in cap space to play with.
DeBrusk holds some cards here too. His full no-move clause runs through next season before it drops to a 15-team no-trade list in 2027, so if he wants to pick his next stop, now is the time to use it.
Vancouver may not get a huge return. The belief is the Canucks would mostly like to get out from under the deal, which could mean selling low on a player they signed to a big ticket just two years ago as the Manny Malhotra era gets going.
DeBrusk closed the book on his year with the team’s podcast before any of this picked up steam. Here’s that conversation:
The draft and free agency are around the corner. If Ottawa pushes, DeBrusk could be wearing a new sweater before July is over.
