The Vancouver Canucks reportedly made their best offer to pending free agent and captain Bo Horvat recently, according to Rick Dhaliwal of Donnie and Dhali — The Team. Horvat rejected the offer, according to Dhaliwal.
Here’s what Dhaliwal had to say:
“Hearing the Canucks made an offer to Bo Horvat recently, and it was rejected. The Canucks stretched it to as far as they could go. As of right now, I believe they have gone as far as they can go. Even the number the Canucks were willing to go to, they would have been over the cap at the end of the season. Bo has earned the right to hit the free agent market. The Canucks will now take the best [trade] offer for Bo.
“So people are going to ask ‘what was the Canucks’ offer?’ Knowing what I know about everything that’s gone on in the last few months. I’m going to guess it was under eight [million]. I believe Bo and his hot start have put him over eight, and after the Miller contract, the wiggle room is just not there. They can’t sign another $8 million player, they just can’t do it.”
Dhaliwal added that he doesn’t feel a trade is imminent, but that the Canucks will start to narrow down their trade offers roughly a month before the March 3rd NHL Trade Deadline.
After reports that the two sides weren’t getting anywhere in terms of their negotiations — and even some reports that suggested they’d stopped talking altogether — this appears to be the Canucks’ final offer, and we could be watching the end of Bo Horvat’s time in Vancouver unfold over the next few months.
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