It has been a tough season, to put it lightly, for Canucks defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson. It just got a little tougher as head coach Rick Tocchet told reporters that the veteran will be out “some weeks” due to an ankle injury, via Patrick Johnston of the Vancouver Province.
The 31-year-old has struggled considerably in his own end, which has helped contribute to Vancouver allowing the second-most goals in the NHL heading into Saturday’s action. On top of that, Ekman-Larsson has underachieved offensively, scoring just twice while picking up 20 assists in 54 games. Those numbers are well below what he was putting up with Arizona when he had a six-year stretch of recording at least 39 points. As a result of his struggles, his average ice time per game has dropped to 20:11, three minutes below his career average and his lowest since his rookie campaign back in 2010-11.
Ekman-Larsson still has four years left on his contract, with Vancouver being responsible for a $7.26M cap charge; Arizona is covering an additional $990K. With that much term remaining, it will be difficult for GM Patrik Allvin to move him; carrying an eight-year buyout charge certainly isn’t ideal either. There’s no good situation for the Canucks when it comes to the veteran, and now they’ll be without him for at least a few weeks. Christian Wolanin was recalled from AHL Abbotsford and could have an opportunity to get into the lineup fairly quickly.
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