Reports indicate the Vancouver Canucks have cut off trade talks with restricted free agents Ryan Kesler and Mason Raymond as well as unrestricted free agent Willie Mitchell until after the season.

Kesler is in the final year of a 3-year, $5.25 million deal, but GM Mike Gillis told TEAM 1040 in Vancouver that the two sides agreed to wait until after the season ends to get a new deal done with the .

"We have a policy where we're willing to discuss contracts through the course of the season, as long as it doesn't become a distraction," Gillis told the TEAM 1040 Radio. "And we felt that in this case, we had plenty of time at the end of the year. Ryan is a key guy on our team and we are determined to get him re-signed, but it ebbs and flows and we felt it was best to wait until the end of the year and be totally focussed on it."

Kesler has 48 points in 54 games this season and the report indicates he may be looking for a salary in the neighbourhood of $5 million per season.

"Perhaps there's disappointment but we went through it last season in two of our core players, in Daniel and Henrik (Sedin), and it didn't get done until the last minute," Gillis told the radio station. "So, this is the nature of things in this and that's how we decided to proceed. But we believe there's plenty of time at the end of the season to come to terms with Ryan."

The Vancouver Province reports the Canucks have also suspended contract talks with another restricted free agent in Mason Raymond.

Defenceman Willie Mitchell is slated to become an unrestricted free agent this summer but the Province is reporting the Canucks have decided to take the same action with his contract discussions.

Posted on February 2nd, 2010 by Chris - Comments

The tension between the Vancouver Canucks and Hockey Night In Canada doesn’t appear ready to ease any time soon. Viewers of Saturday night’s game between the Canucks and the Chicago Blackhawks noted that no one from the Canucks appeared on the broadcast of the club’s 5-1 win.

It wasn’t a coincidence. Canucks management declined to confirm a Hockey Night embargo on Saturday, saying they are trying to move on. But sources say the club is furious about what it considered a “one-sided character assassination” of forward Alex Burrows by Hockey Night host Ron MacLean on the Jan. 16 broadcast, so furious that it denied the show access to its players and staff on Saturday.

Just as vexing to the team is Hockey Night’s reluctance to admit that it might have ignored CBC’s journalistic fairness policy. MacLean and CBC did not attempt to get Burrows’ version of the events being dissected, a basic premise in balanced reporting. Discussions last week between the team and CBC did not give the club satisfaction.

So Saturday night, CBC sources say, the Canucks apparently told the venerable hockey program that no one would be available for interviews.

“The Canucks did not want to do any interviews on the show last night,” CBC spokesman Jeff Keay said. “We accepted their decision and we are now moving on from this issue.”

For those who have not kept up with the drama, MacLean and Colin Campbell, the NHL’s senior vice-president and director of hockey operations, spent 11 minutes branding Burrows as a diver and not trustworthy in his claim to have been threatened with revenge by referee Stéphane Auger in a 35-second chat before Vancouver’s 3-2 loss to Nashville Jan. 11 - a chat even Auger admits was improper.

Auger assessed a controversial penalty (and a misconduct) to Burrows in the third period that resulted in a Predators win.

Posted on January 25th, 2010 by Chris - Comments

Veteran NHL defenceman Mathieu Schneider, waived earlier this week by the Vancouver Canucks, has reported to the Manitoba Moose of the AHL.

The 40 year old New York native, who signed with the Canucks during the off-season, missed the first month of the NHL season completing a rehab of a shoulder injury, but never fit into the Vancouver blue-line.

He played 17 games but left the Canucks Dec. 18 after being a healthy scratch for the fourth time. Canucks coach Alain Vigneault had some less-than-warm words about the matter last week and ruled out Schneider's return to the team, even in the wake of a serious leg injury to defenceman Kevin Bieksa.

Schneider was said to be unhappy about his role and playing time and the Canucks' brass has admitted to not liking his attitude.

Vancouver GM Mike Gillis, Schneider's former agent, has been trying to trade him, but nothing has materialized.

Posted on January 5th, 2010 by Chris - Comments

Henrik Sedin has been named the NHL's first star for the month for December, 2009.

Sedin led all scorers with 25 points (five goals, 20 assists) in 15 games, helping the Canucks go 10-4-1 and move into contention for the Northwest Division lead. Sedin recorded points in all but one game in December and began the month with multiple assists in six consecutive games, capped by a three-assist effort in a 4-3 victory over the Minnesota Wild Dec. 12.

Sedin, who earned his second consecutive selection to the Swedish Olympic team Dec. 27, ranks second in the NHL scoring race with 55 points (19 goals, 36 assists) in 42 games.

Posted on January 4th, 2010 by Chris - Comments