Despite reports that he could make more money on the open market, Vancouver Canucks forward Dakota Joshua signed a four-year contract extension with the club on Thursday after a terrific 2023-24 campaign, general manager Patrik Allvin announced. Joshua will make $3.25 million AAV and $13 million over the length of the deal.
The 28-year-old made a name for himself in Vancouver last season, scoring 22 goals across the regular-season and playoffs and helping to form one of the league's most lethal third lines along with Conor Garland and Teddy Blueger.
Over just 13 Stanley Cup Playoff games in 2024, the Michigan native exploded for four goals and eight points, including scoring a couple of key goals against both the Nashville Predators and Edmonton Oilers.
Joshua also “took less to continue having success in Vancouver,” reported hockey insider Rick Dhaliwal. Dhaliwal spoke with Joshua's agent Rich Evans shortly after the deal was announced, confirming that the power forward wanted to remain in British Columbia.
“Rich Evans – Talks heated up with the Canucks this morning and we pushed it across the finish line,” Dhaliwal reported. “July 1st could have been good for Dakota but he told me as long as the money made sense in Vancouver, sign in Vancouver. Dakota is very happy to be returning.”
There were rumbling that Joshua could have made upwards of $3.5-4 million AAV on the open market, especially with the salary cap set to rise. He now joins Blueger as another excellent value signing by Allvin, who is proving to be one of the more capable Canucks general managers in recent memory.
Canucks' Patrik Allvin staying busy this offseason
The Canucks were beaten by the Oilers in a thrilling All-Canadian second-round series, dropping Game 7 on home ice at Rogers Arena. But Allvin has made some shrewd moves to ensure Vancouver stays competitive next year — and has the potential to swing for the fences in free agency.
He first locked Blueger up on a team-friendly two-year, $3.6 million pact earlier this week. He then offloaded 85 percent of Ilya Mikheyev's hefty contract to the Chicago Blackhawks, in a deal that also sent pending unrestricted free agent Sam Lafferty and a second-round pick to the Windy City.
After those two moves — and now Joshua's signing — the Canucks have the cap space to potentially sign both Tyler Myers and Nikita Zadorov, two pending UFA defensemen who were important pieces of the Pacific Division-winning recipe in 2023-24.
And, it allows Allvin to take a stab at one of the top players on the free agent market in Jake Guentzel, who played under him with the Pittsburgh Penguins. If the Canucks can find a way to get Zadorov and Myers signed, even just one of them, as well as lure Guentzel to Vancouver, this team would be well-positioned to defend the division title next season.
With three important moves made in less than 48 hours, it's clear that Allvin and the entire Canucks' front office means business this summer. And that's music to the ears of fans of the franchise.
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