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The Vancouver Canucks finished outside of the playoffs once again this year. It was the fourth time in five years that the Canucks did not make it to the playoffs. They won the Pacific Division in 2024, but took a step back this season. The Canucks have already made offseason moves to move back to the playoffs. Still, they have multiple pending free agents, including Pius Suter. We look at the three best destinations for Suter in the 2005 NHL free agent period.
Pius Suter is coming off the best season of his NHL career. He scored a career high 25 goals, while also tying his career high with 21 assists. That gave him 46 points, ten more than the best in his career. Further, he saw an increase in ice time and was solid on both the power play and penalty kill this past season. At the end of the season, Suter was playing on the first line for the Canucks. While he did not provide production consummate with a top-line forward, he could be an attractive second or third-line option for multiple teams.
This past year, Suter had a $1.6 million cap hit, but he is expected to sign for over $4.9 million AAV on his next contract. With cap space of just $15.8 million for the Canucks, re-signing Suter will most likely not be an option. We look at the three best options for Sutet this offseason.
Suter stays in Canada
The Montreal Canadiens are expected to be a major player in free agency this year. The Canadiens need to upgrade their center positions, specifically on the second line. The Canadiens have a great young core on their top line, led by Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, and Juraj Slafkovsky. Suzuki led the team in points this year, with 30 goals and 59 assists. Caufield led the team in goals with 37 goals while adding 33 assists. Slafkovsky was fourth on the team in points with 51. All three are under the age of 26, and all are under contract for at least five years.
Still, the second line saw a drop-off in production. Brendan Gallagher led the way with 21 goals and 17 assists. Meanwhile, Christian Dvorak was often the center on the line, having just 12 goals and 31 assists. Suter would be an instant upgrade for the second line. He would not only help the second line, but also improve the power play and the penalty kill. The Canadiens are projected to have over $21 million in cap space, with their major free agent being Dvorak. Signing Suter could be an upgrade and keep them under the cap.
Colorado comes calling for another forward
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The Colorado Avalanche may have a major need for a second-line center. They currently have Nathan MacKinnon on the top line and Charlie Coyle on the third line. Still, Brock Nelson is a pending free agent. Nelson was great in his time with the Avalanche. He scored six goals while adding seven assists in just 19 regular-season games. He also added four assists in seven games in the playoffs. Still, if Suter is willing to take less to go to a contender, this could be an attractive replacement.
Nelson is expected to make over $7 million on his next contract. The Avlaakche have just $7.7 million in cap space, meaning to fill out their roster, the Avalanche would have to move on from other current players in order to keep Nelson. They could also move to replace him. Suter would save two million dollars for the Avalanche this offseason. While he does not come with the same production, he would be a value option that could still score from the second line. Pairing him with Gabriel Landeskog and Valeri Nichushkin would help Suter out as well.
The Predators need forward help
If Suter is looking for a payday, while playing for a team with hopes of the playoffs, Nashville may be his home. First, the Predators have just two free agents this offseason. One is a restricted free agent in Luke Evangelista, and the other is Jakub Vrana. Still, the Predators may be willing to part with center Ryan O'Reilly, creating a need on the second line. O'Reilly was slightly more productive than Suter this past year, scoring 53 points on 21 goals and 32 assists. He was also the most productive forward not on the top line.
Still, the Predators have just $19 million in cap space. While they have most of their roster locked up, they could move O'Reilly and sign Stuter, while keeping most of their cap space. They could also just add Suter to the rotation. Suter would be a major upgrade of Fedor Svechkov on the third line, and would give the 22-year-old time to develop on the fourth line. This would also allow them to move on from fourth-line center Michael McCarron, who will be 31 years old this year. While Suter would be an investment, he would provide flexibility on the top three lines for the Predators.
