Teddy Blueger enters Adam Foote’s first Vancouver summer with his future wide open.
The Canucks closed the season at 25-49-8 for 58 points, dead last in the NHL.
Their -100 goal differential tells the same story without any sugarcoating.
That’s why this offseason feels bigger than a few depth tweaks.
Vancouver isn’t just trimming the edges after a bad spring.
It’s trying to figure out which veterans still fit a roster that has clearly turned toward a younger core.
Evander Kane looks like the cleanest break.
Vancouver brought him in from Edmonton last offseason for a 2025 fourth-round pick, hoping he could add weight and some bite to the top nine.
Instead, Kane finished with 13 goals, 31 points, and a -20 rating in 71 games.
For a 34-year-old winger headed to unrestricted free agency on July 1, this has the look of a short stay and a quick exit.
Derek Forbort sits in a similar spot, though for different reasons.
The veteran defenseman played only 2 games because injury wiped out almost his entire year, and that makes a new deal tough to justify on either side.
Evander Kane among 3 expected Canucks exits as Teddy Blueger becomes key call
Teddy Blueger is the name to watch because this one isn’t fully shut down.
Vancouver had chances to move pieces before the deadline, yet Blueger stayed, which says the club still saw value in keeping him around.
That matters because Blueger still fits the kind of job coaches trust.
He can handle bottom-six minutes, take defensive assignments, and give structure to a lineup that badly lacked it for long stretches this season.
At the same time, this is exactly when a pending UFA checks the market.
Blueger is at the point in his career where term, role, and team direction all matter, especially on a club coming off a collapse like this one.
Patrik Allvin and Foote now have to decide what kind of room they want at puck drop next fall.
Keeping every veteran around makes little sense, but clearing too much experience out of the room carries its own risk.
So the most likely outcome is still 3 exits, with Blueger the only case that feels at least a little alive.
Kane looks headed elsewhere, Forbort looks done, and Blueger may simply wait to see whether Vancouver gives him a reason to stay.
Should the Vancouver Canucks bring Teddy Blueger back?
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