Canucks 2025 Free Agent Class Preview

As evidenced in previous seasons, it’s never too early to start thinking about the next free agency period. While this one may not be as high-stakes as 2024 or 2026, we may still see a number of pieces come off the Canucks’ board by this time next year. Moves will definitely be made throughout the season, which may change the course of General Manager Patrik Allvin heading into next July. As it stands, Puckpedia.com notes that six roster players are set to hit free agency, with one heading into restricted free agency. Here’s what the Canucks may do with each of them.

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Brock Boeser

One of the standouts of this list, Boeser is currently on the last year of a three-year, $19.95M bridge deal that he signed in 2022. This upcoming year will be his first testing unrestricted free agency, as he has spent his entire NHL career with the Canucks. Having had his first 40-goal season and solidified himself a spot on J.T. Miller’s wing, it won’t be easy to keep Boeser in Vancouver for the same price that he currently makes. Basing a hypothetical contract on his performance from the 2023-2024 regular season, an extension anywhere within the seven-to-eight-million dollar ballpark makes the most sense. Unless a team comes knocking with an attractive bargaining chip, it’s unlikely that the team moves on from their longest-tenured skater.

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Phil Di Giuseppe

Phil Di Giuseppe has been with the Vancouver Canucks since the 2022-2023 regular season, having signed a one-year deal worth $750K in the NHL and $475K in the AHL. He followed this up with a two-year extension worth $775K and $500K per year in the aforementioned leagues. Seeing as he’ll be 31 by the time his current deal is done, it’s a toss-up as to whether the team will keep him or choose to bring someone else up from Abbotsford. With five goals and five assists in 51 games in the 2023-2024 season, Di Giuseppe is a player who could fill in the team’s bottom six in the event of any injuries. While he’s provided the team with a tough, energetic presence throughout his tenure, given that they’ve recently signed players such as Kiefer Sherwood and Daniel Sprong, it’s unlikely that Di Giuseppe will be able to crack the lineup in the coming years.

Derek Forbort

Many Canucks fans may remember Derek Forbort for giving Nils Höglander a bit of a hard time a few years ago in a matchup against the Winnipeg Jets. Now, hopefully, Forbort will be defending players like Höglander from these sorts of plays rather than it going the other way. Forbort recently signed a $1.5M contract with Vancouver that ends in July of 2025. He played 35 games for the Boston Bruins in the 2023-2024 regular season, filling a role without being called upon to eat up large chunks of minutes. He’ll do well as a sixth defenceman who can throw his body around and may even get another short contract or two from the Canucks. However, it’s unlikely that he’ll stay in Vancouver for an extended period of time.

Nils Höglander

The only restricted free agent on this list, Höglander is entering the 2024-2025 season looking to build upon the successes he showed last year. His 24 even-strength goals had him tied for second on the team with Brock Boeser, while his 36 points shattered previous career highs. With a high-energy motor and the ability to slot in at various parts of the lineup, Höglander is a versatile homegrown player that the Canucks shouldn’t back away from. He’s currently approaching the last year of a two-year, $1.1M contract. With the offensive and defensive improvements he demonstrated throughout the 2023-2024 regular season, Höglander is bound to see a raise in his salary — but how much? As his qualifying offer would be $1.2M per year, it wouldn’t be surprising if the Canucks bumped that number up a bit, having his AAV range from $1.5M to even $2M.

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Noah Juulsen

Local boy Noah Juulsen has been with the Canucks since the 2021-2022 regular season, having signed one-year deals up until the 2023 free agency period. Making $775K per year, he’ll be 28 by the time his current deal is over. He took the ice for 54 games in the past season, amassing one goal and six assists throughout then. With a willingness to hit opponents and a tough presence on the Canucks’ blueline, Juulsen is a good fill-in for any injuries to the team’s defensive core. He can also slide down to Abbotsford if the team is looking for a tough presence to help out throughout the season. Look for Juulsen to get another small, short-term, two-way extension — unless he chooses to pursue other options around the league.

Daniel Sprong

The Canucks Sprong upon the opportunity to acquire this 27-year-old winger as the 2024 free agency period went on, and he remained unsigned. He signed with Vancouver on July 20th for one year at $975K — not a bad deal at all for a 21-goal scorer a couple of years prior. Sprong is an excellent depth-scoring addition for the Canucks and will contribute significantly to the team’s top nine. Whether the team re-signs him beyond this upcoming season is a coin toss. However, if he’s not asking for a lot and can provide the offence he once did as a member of the Seattle Kraken and Detriot Red Wings, it’d be easy to welcome him back as a lineup mainstay. It wouldn’t be surprising at all for his AAV to increase to nearly $1.5M a season.

Pius Suter

A former member of the Chicago Blackhawks and Detriot Red Wings, Pius Suter started his career with a 27-point season. He’s consistently stayed above 20 points every season of his career despite only playing 82 games once. As a member of the Canucks, he currently makes $1.6M a year and will be 29 by the time his contract expires. With a bunch of new depth-scoring additions, such as Danton Heinen and Daniel Sprong, the Canucks could likely move on from Suter following the end of his deal. However, he brings a certain type of versatility to his game that makes it difficult for him to move past. Not to mention, he’s got a knack for timely scoring — look at his goals in Game 1 and 6 of Vancouver’s series against the Nashville Predators. As a low-cost, low-maintenance player, Suter can play up and down the lineup and could realistically only cost the team around $2M a year moving forward.

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