Proposal: Lindholm to Canucks for Hunter Brustewicz +

[Djp]

To CGY
Hunter Brustewicz
Kuzmenko
2024 1st round pick

To Van
Lindholm


Canucks then extend Lindholm to a 7.5 x 7 contract

The trade would allow the Canucks to continue to deploy the lotto line and have Lindholm Centre the 2nd line with players like Mikhyaev, Hoglander, Suter etc.. or they can have extreme depth and have forward pairings of Boeser-Miller and Lindholm-Pettersson as their 1-2 lines....


For Calgary.

They get Hunter Brustewicz. 19 yr old top prospect Right Shot Dman. Currently leads the OHL in scoring. Plays in all situation for the Kitchener Rangers. His development has sky-rocketed since being draft by the Canucks. He has 119 pts in his last 108 OHL games.

Flames also get Andrei Kuzmenko who scored 39 goals and 74 points last season. This year he has been in the doghouse as he doesnt quite play the hard- nosed game that Toch is demanding from him. However Kuzy might just be the perfect trigger man to play along-side someone like Huberdeau. Kuzy is also still under contract next year. The Flames can allow him to shine offensively and could be part of the re-tool as he is only 27 yrs old. If not then the Flames can just flip him at this years trade deadline or next years trade deadline. For what its worth, there has been lots of reports that many many teams are interested in Kuzmenko, which would be great for the Flames if they plan on flipping him later....

There have been numerous players like burst who had a jump in production d+1 year and amount to nothing in the nhl. His value has not jumped making him a core piece of a deal.

 

[DJJones]

Kuzmenko is worth nothing to Calgary.

Brustwicz is interesting though, if our scouts like him would certainly be what they are looking for.

 

[UrbanImpact]

There have been numerous players like burst who had a jump in production d+1 year and amount to nothing in the nhl. His value has not jumped making him a core piece of a deal.

Okay and how many those guys that jumped in production had 100 pts in a CHL season as a Dman?

 

[Diamonddog01]

Kuzmenko is worth nothing to Calgary.

Brustwicz is interesting though, if our scouts like him would certainly be what they are looking for.

Makes sense. Only thing from Van's POV is that some salary has to go the other way.

 

[UrbanImpact]

Kuzmenko is worth nothing to Calgary.

Brustwicz is interesting though, if our scouts like him would certainly be what they are looking for.

Thats not a make or break for Van. Kuzy just makes it so that CGY doesnt have to retain.

If CGY would rather retain and scracth Kuzy out of the deal and Van throws in a 2nd instead then thats fine as well..

 

[Johnsie19]

I know it's a trade discussion board for hockey fans, but I'm always amused when an OP creates a turd polishing thread in an attempt to convince random fans of another team that they should pull the trigger.

Like, OK, you convinced me that Kuzmenko didn't sign a big contract this off-season and then regress severely. Let me call Craig Conroy and tell him to look at this sell job on HFBoards, after which he'll get this trade done ASAP.

This is unfortunately the overreaction to fans trying to trade their lesser players. Any struggling player is literally worthless on HF boards. Demko and Miller were untradable last season, according to people like yourself and now they are all stars and arguably top 10 players in the league this yr.

Kuzmenko is struggling, and hes probably not a 39 goal scorer ever again, but he could easily be a 30 goal scorer. He has some bad defensive habits the coach has say him down for. Clearly he is a talented player that would be an asset to any team in the league though. And his contract is totally fine.

Remember what you are trading is a 2nd line center whos about to be a UFA. Look what Horvat returned and he was 2nd in the league in goals at the time and 2 yrs younger.

 

[RasmusAndersson]

I really like this deal from the Flames actually. I’m not convinced we’ll be getting a top prospect on top of a first for Lindholm as a rental, and Brzustewicz is a very intriguing pickup. RD’s with his upside don’t come around every day. Watching him a few times this year, he almost reminds me of a more offensive right-handed Josh Morrissey.

Obviously still a project and could easily bust, but I think this is what we should be looking for here. Plus if we were to do this we could probably flip Kuzmenko retained for a mid pick next deadline. Maybe we try to get an additional mid-round pick because there will likely be a bidding war, but I like this as a base.

 

[DJJones]

Thats not a make or break for Van. Kuzy just makes it so that CGY doesnt have to retain.

If CGY would rather retain and scracth Kuzy out of the deal and Van throws in a 2nd instead then thats fine as well..

Ya think they'd rather retain than take him unless they had a deal in place to flip him anyway.

 

[Bounces R Way]

sure fine whatever

You're retaining some on Kuzmenko though, no way the Flames trade Lindholm and add cap.

 

[UrbanImpact]

This is unfortunately the overreaction to fans trying to trade their lesser players. Any struggling player is literally worthless on HF boards. Demko and Miller were untradable last season, according to people like yourself and now they are all stars and arguably top 10 players in the league this yr.

Kuzmenko is struggling, and hes probably not a 39 goal scorer ever again, but he could easily be a 30 goal scorer. He has some bad defensive habits the coach has say him down for. Clearly he is a talented player that would be an asset to any team in the league though. And his contract is totally fine.

Remember what you are trading is a 2nd line center whos about to be a UFA. Look what Horvat returned and he was 2nd in the league in goals at the time and 2 yrs younger.

This offer is actually quite close to the Horvat trade

Brustewicz >> Raty
Kuzmenko >>> Beauvaullier
Canucks 2024 1st round pick << Islanders 2023 1st round Pick

Lindholm-Horvat comparison

 

[Drew Doubty]

This offer is actually quite close to the Horvat trade

Brustewicz >> Raty
Kuzmenko >>> Beauvaullier
Canucks 2024 1st round pick << Islanders 2023 1st round Pick

Lindholm-Horvat comparison

Even more comparable when you consider Beauvillier also had 1 more year on his deal

 

[Peter Griffin]

Even more comparable when you consider Beauvillier also had 1 more year on his deal

Vancouver also retained 25% on Horvat.

 

[PettersonHughes]

This offer is actually quite close to the Horvat trade

Brustewicz >> Raty
Kuzmenko >>> Beauvaullier
Canucks 2024 1st round pick << Islanders 2023 1st round Pick

Lindholm-Horvat comparison

Keep in mind also that when Horvat was traded to the Islanders he was scoring at 1.1 points per game. Lindholm, who plays on a divisional opponent in Calgary, is at 0.6 points per game. Kuzmenko and Hunter are better assets respectively than Raty and Beau. How is it worthwhile for Vancouver to make this move when we're paying ABOVE market value for an underachieving #1C, just because we "could use" an improve to the 2nd line if 6-40-9 are back together for good? Hardest of passes.

 

[cwede]

To CGY Hunter Brustewicz

a bit of work finding who this guys was

seems the actual spelling is: Hunter Brzustewicz

CHL notebook: Canucks prospect Brzustewicz shining in OHL | NHL.com

Kitchener defenseman leads league with 60 points

www.nhl.com

 

[Joe Rogan]

Predictably, Lindholm's number went off a cliff as soon as Gaudreau and Tkachuk left and he couldn't ride their coattails anymore. How is his value so much different from Kuzmenko then? Would rather go after Buchnevich

 

[Double Dion]

All valid points.

I think if the Avs do make a deal with Calgary, Sam Malinski will be a part of the trade. Fills a need for the Flames. Your ownership seems very adverse to rebuilding too.

Ryan Johansen isn't my cup of tea, but he's got 11 goals this season. Lindholm has 8. So I'd assume the Avs are offering RyJo + Malinski + 2024 1st and not sure what else.

Yes that just wouldn't move the needle for me personally. We have 2 better PP QBs coming in Poirier and Morin. He also isn't better at that aspect than either of Weegar or Andersson who are signed long term even at the AHL level.

 

[Drew Doubty]

Keep in mind also that when Horvat was traded to the Islanders he was scoring at 1.1 points per game. Lindholm, who plays on a divisional opponent in Calgary, is at 0.6 points per game. Kuzmenko and Hunter are better assets respectively than Raty and Beau. How is it worthwhile for Vancouver to make this move when we're paying ABOVE market value for an underachieving #1C, just because we "could use" an improve to the 2nd line if 6-40-9 are back together for good? Hardest of passes.

Let's not pretend Lindholm is defined by this season or even entirely by his points production. He's a great 2-way piece who's shown he's able to produce with elite linemates. His value is probably on-par with Horvat's last year. With him the Canucks would have so many options:

Balanced top-6:

Mikheyev-Pettersson-Lindholm
Suter/Hoglander-Miller-Boeser

Lotto line + shutdown line:

Pettersson-Miller-Boeser
Suter-Lindholm-Mikheyev

3 solid lines:

Mikheyev-Pettersson-Hoglander
Suter-Miller-Boeser
Joshua-Lindholm-Garland

 

[Double Dion]

Hes pacing around 20 goals right now while being scracthed 4x and having 0 confidence. 20 is too low for him.

Defensive liability?

The knock on him is that he isnt a strong forechecker,not the best board/wall guy and is sometimes too fancy rather than direct when he has the puck.

Defensive liability or being a floater is not an accurate description of Kuzy.

He was top 2 in Canucks Forward last year at Plus/Minus despite being coached by Bodreau who does not care if you back check or not.

He was a +9 when guys like Boeser were -24.

He's an Even player this year.

I mean if you like him then keep him. I see something totally different there. Your coach clearly sees the same thing I do.

 

[Double Dion]

This is unfortunately the overreaction to fans trying to trade their lesser players. Any struggling player is literally worthless on HF boards. Demko and Miller were untradable last season, according to people like yourself and now they are all stars and arguably top 10 players in the league this yr.

Kuzmenko is struggling, and hes probably not a 39 goal scorer ever again, but he could easily be a 30 goal scorer. He has some bad defensive habits the coach has say him down for. Clearly he is a talented player that would be an asset to any team in the league though. And his contract is totally fine.

Remember what you are trading is a 2nd line center whos about to be a UFA. Look what Horvat returned and he was 2nd in the league in goals at the time and 2 yrs younger.

Huh? Demko was never untradable. Miller didn't struggle last season, he had 30 goals and was a PPG player. I think you're dreaming when you say people thought they were untradable. Comparing Miller and Demko to a guy who was shooting more than double the percentage elite shooters shoot when he had a good year is silly. Mangiapane shot a sky high percentage one year, what happened the next couple of seasons? It's the same thing with Kuzmenko, except Mangiapane can still play on a shutdown line.

 

[PettersonHughes]

Let's not pretend Lindholm is defined by this season or even entirely by his points production. He's a great 2-way piece who's shown he's able to produce with elite linemates. His value is probably on-par with Horvat's last year. With him the Canucks would have so many options:

Balanced top-6:

Mikheyev-Pettersson-Lindholm
Suter/Hoglander-Miller-Boeser

Lotto line + shutdown line:

Pettersson-Miller-Boeser
Suter-Lindholm-Mikheyev

3 solid lines:

Mikheyev-Pettersson-Hoglander
Suter-Miller-Boeser
Joshua-Lindholm-Garland

I'm not saying he doesn't have that value, but when your drop in production between the two players is as precipitous as Florida Huberdeau to Calgary Huberdeau, you can't expect him to get the same return in a trade, or at least I'd hope my GM wouldn't pony up to get him. Just like when Boeser was struggling on my team late last season I wouldn't expect him to get the same trade return as Boeser would this season, even if they're the same player. It's market economics really -- buy low, sell high? Paying a high price for an asset at a low simply defies logic IMO.

 

[blankall]

Predictably, Lindholm's number went off a cliff as soon as Gaudreau and Tkachuk left and he couldn'tride their coattails anymore. How is his value so much different from Kuzmenko then? Would rather go after Buchnevich

You're talking about a center that finishes near the top of Selke votes vs. a one-dimensional winger who's lost his scoring touch. If I need to explain the difference, you don't know much about hockey.

 

[Three On Zero]

No thanks from Canucks POV, any cap or acquisitions need to directly improve the defence.

 

[platotld]

The Canucks are trading this year's Kuzmenko who is a 28 year old, 20 goal/40 point scorer signed for this year and next at $5.5 million. He offers nothing to the Flames rebuild, and the owners aren't just going to throw away $7ish million dollars. He also has a full NMC/NTC. He's likely not accepting this trade.

Says you.. I bet he'ed welcome playing with the Canucks. And it's one more year on 5.5 so not locked in long term. I find you a neey natter chatter boxer.

 

[Drew Doubty]

I'm not saying he doesn't have that value, but when your drop in production between the two players is as precipitous as Florida Huberdeau to Calgary Huberdeau, you can't expect him to get the same return in a trade, or at least I'd hope my GM wouldn't pony up to get him. Just like when Boeser was struggling on my team late last season I wouldn't expect him to get the same trade return as Boeser would this season, even if they're the same player. It's market economics really -- buy low, sell high? Paying a high price for an asset at a low simply defies logic IMO.

I don't think a 1st, Bruz, and Kuzmenko is a high price. Kuzmenko has almost no value, and the Canucks would be lucky to trade him for nothing. Wingers don't tend to hold a lot of value, especially middle 6 ones with negative defensive impact and 5+ million price tag w/ term attached. Maybe if he picks it up and starts earning the coaches trust while producing more 5v5 he could hold positive value. In fact, these past 3 games he's actually looked way better despite not scoring so maybe that happens. But for now, he's a guy you throw in to make the numbers work. Not a pure cap "dump" persay, but a reclamation project that no contender would value. I still think he's a 60 pt guy but he ain't right now.

For Lindholm, his defensive contributions and bad linemates are something every GM knows about and factors in. Consider this:

Horvat's most common linemate last year was JT Miller. Lindholm's is Mangiapane.

Horvat played on the 10th best powerplay and had 18 PPP at the time of the trade, Lindholm is playing on the 30th ranked PP and has 5 PPP. Not a knock against Horvat, he's an elite bumper player, but you could imagine Lindholm having 4-5 more points if he was on a better unit.

Lindholm finished 2nd in Selke voting in 2022, and 10th in 2023. Horvat's best finish was 22nd in 2023.

This team needs to take a big swing on someone to be pushed over the top and I think he's a great "buy-low" candidate. He's the right age for this core, and I like taking a risk on locking him into an extension that could provide a ton of positive value if he could get close to where he was before. Maybe I'm delusional.

 

[Drew Doubty]

You're talking about a center that finishes near the top of Selke votes vs. a one-dimensional winger who's lost his scoring touch. If I need to explain the difference, you don't know much about hockey.

I think you're mostly right about Kuzmenko, but I bet you could still find a suitor for him, though the return would be something like a mid-round pick or depth D.

He's an interesting player who can do things that only elite players can do. He's next-level creative, can protect the puck very well, good scoring touch around the net, and has a lethal shot when he gets it off. He's been an unlucky playmaker so far and his assist numbers should be higher, he also misses the net a ton so I think his shooting percentage looks higher than it should be, he also only shoots when it's a grade A opportunity. People act like last year was entire sh% driven, but it's clear to anyone who watches him that he's just not confident right now.

He'd be a good bet for a rebuilding team like Chicago to take and try and work with him. You could then either move him with retention next year or even extend him if you like the fit. Worst case scenario you let him walk after next year which would only cost you the cap space.