Adding another centreman to the Vancouver Canucks lineup isn’t their only need in the offseason.

This Canucks team is filled with middle and bottom six wingers, and if management wants to give Elias Pettersson the best chance possible at a bounce back year, they could look to add a true top six winger that can play alongside him.

The upcoming free agency class doesn’t leave the team with a ton of options to target, but with Nikolaj Ehlers likely being available on July 1st, he would be one of their best options to go after.

The Player

Ehlers is coming off back-to-back 60-plus point seasons, where he scored over 20 goals in each. He also had a solid playoff performance this season, registering seven points in eight games. 

The Danish forward is a speedy, skilled winger who would add much needed offence to the Canucks lineup immediately. He’s coming off one of the best seasons in his career, being on a 75-point pace in 82 games and at 29 years old, is very much in the prime of his career. 

He isn’t the biggest player, listed at 6’0”, 172 pounds, so don’t expect him to be a grit and grind type of player, and injuries are certainly a concern. But he is a dangerous threat off the rush that can create for himself and his teammates, making anyone around him a threat to score.

The Fit

The addition of Ehlers would make him the Canucks best winger right away. He finished the year in Winnipeg playing on the Jets’ second line with Cole Perfetti and Vladislav Namestnikov. Coming to Vancouver, he would slot in on their first line playing with Elias Pettersson and Jake DeBrusk. 

His offensive output alongside Perfetti and Namestnikov would suggest that playing with Pettersson and DeBrusk, who are objectively upgrades over his linemates in Winnipeg, would allow Ehlers to flourish and have the potential to reach new career highs in point totals. 

His ability to create for his linemates could unlock Pettersson’s goal-scoring ability once again, as well as give DeBrusk even more opportunity to find the back of the net.

Ehlers excels creating off the rush, and is one of the NHL’s best at controlled zone entries. The Canucks struggled with this a ton and with a lack of high-octane forechecking from Pettersson, Ehlers ability to entre the offensive zone with possession of the puck, this could lead to more high danger chances off the rush for the Canucks.

The three of them on a line would be a threat off the rush, and with DeBrusk playing more of that power forward role, Pettersson and Ehlers could use their offensive creativity to make things happen while DeBrusk cleans it up in and around the net.

Ehlers would also add a ton of skill to the Canucks power play. This season, he was on the Jets’ top unit, which was the best in the NHL regular season. He managed to register 22 points on the power play as a part of that unit and was predominantly featured in the bumper spot, but would pop out and shift around to the half wall and below the circles. 

Adding him to the Canucks unit, he would likely have a similar role. Starting in the bumper spot, but supporting Pettersson on the right side, jumping out to be an option down low and then shifting around and swapping spots with Pettersson to create movement and open up holes in the opposing team’s penalty kill. 

Not only would he add a ton of value to the powerplay in the offensive zone, but with the Canucks struggles to break the puck into the zone on the powerplay, his elite level talent to bring the puck in with possession could be a big addition to the Canucks powerplay breakout.

What might it cost?

Currently, according to AFP Analytics, Ehlers is projected to receive a contract of just over $8 million over six seasons. We know that adding players through free agency usually comes at a premium cost, especially this offseason with the lack of elite players available in free agency.

The Canucks offer to entice Ehlers to coming to Vancouver would likely be a seven-year deal, the maximum allowed for unrestricted free agents, and would have to be around $9 million if not more.

His offensive production may not be quite what you’d want from a $9 million player, however, the opportunity Ehlers would have in Vancouver could allow him to be worth that amount in his first season, and with the salary cap rising over the next few years his current production would still make this a solid deal for the Canucks. 

So what do you think Canucks fans? Should the team target a solidified top-six NHL winger in Nikolaj Ehlers? Or should they look to take more risks on less proven players that don’t come as high a cost?