Jack Roslovic is arguably the best free agent still available on the market in the dog days of summer — and the UFA has been linked to the Vancouver Canucks as a potential top destination over the last couple of weeks.
It makes sense; Roslovic is an effective middle-six center, which is exactly what the Canucks are looking for ahead of training camp next month. But as The Athletic's Thomas Drance reported on Tuesday, it looks like the squad is no longer interested in signing the 28-year-old.
“At this point, from what I can gather from senior club sources informed about the organization’s thinking on the matter, the Canucks have cooled significantly on the prospect of adding Roslovic as an unrestricted free agent,” wrote the hockey insider. “Vancouver is still in the market to land a center, but the trade market is viewed as a more likely and realistic route of addressing the club’s greatest remaining need.”
Drance notes that, considering both Filip Chytil's return to full health, along with Aatu Raty's late-season emergence last year, “the club has enough at center to stay in control in the short term if necessary, and that a center-capable option, like Roslovic, isn’t likely to be the full-time answer the club requires down the middle of its forward group anyway.”
Even with Chytil and Raty in the fold, the Canucks look much weaker down the middle than they did when the 2024-25 season started. Gone is JT Miller, who was the team's most effective forward before he was traded to the New York Rangers. Also out of the equation is Pius Suter, who had an excellent campaign but signed with the St. Louis Blues in July.
Canucks looking to add — even if it isn't Jack Roslovic
On a contending team, Chytil and Raty probably aren't the answer as 2C and 3C, respectively. Roslovic could have been that answer, allowing the two forwards to move down the lineup.
While Drance's reporting doesn't necessarily rule out a potential partnership between player and club, it's looking less and less likely that the Columbus, Ohio native will land in British Columbia.
It is somewhat surprising that Roslovic doesn't have a contract this deep into the offseason. He managed back-to-back 40+ point seasons with the Columbus Blue Jackets between 2021-23, and just added 39 points in 81 games with the Carolina Hurricanes in 2024-25.
As a silver lining for Canucks fans, even if the front office is reportedly no longer targeting Roslovic, the executive group is still trying to make the team better before October.
“The club is actively kicking tires and exploring its options. Vancouver would execute a trade today if the deal returned a credible middle-six center — even if that center had more of a defensive bent to their game,” wrote Drance.
The Canucks' hockey operations department is comfortable “betting on the centers they have” going into the 2025-26 campaign, and that could mean another player isn't added to the equation until later in October, if at all.
It'll be interesting to see both where Roslovic ends up signing, and who Vancouver potentially adds instead of the former first-round pick.
