According to Elliotte Friedman, the Vancouver Canucks have made it known for the past 18 months that they are shopping 27-year-old winger Conor Garland. The Western Canadian club is looking to clear up salary cap space and add to their blueline. They believe that moving Garland could achieve both of those things.
NHL insider Chris Johnston gave an update on Garland’s trade market during a segment of his SDPN show on Tuesday. Among the teams that Johnston listed as willing to come to the negotiation table with the Canucks were the Washington Capitals.
Will Conor Garland be traded from the Canucks? He's got a new agent 👀@reporterchris and @jkamckenzie discuss the player on the #CJShow
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“It sounds like there’s maybe five or six teams that at least have enough interest to want to engage in some conversations,” Johnston said. “I count among them Nashville, Washington, Columbus. I think Carolina is willing to explore there.”
The talk surrounding Garland has picked up steam because he has recently switched agent representation for the direct purpose of trying to find a new landing spot. Garland is now represented by hockey super agent Judd Moldaver who boasts a client list that includes Auston Matthews, Connor McDavid, Zach Werenski, Roman Josi, etc.
“Conor Garland makes that move in part because he wants Judd to try to help find him somewhere else to play,” Johnston said. “And where we’re at right now in this moment is, I think that’s in a bit of a holding pattern.”
The holding pattern may change after what ESPN’s Kevin Weekes reported on Wednesday. Weekes says that the Canucks could now be willing to retain up to 30 percent of Garland’s salary in any deal.
Garland is under contract through the end of the 2025–26 season at a $4.95 million cap hit. Thirty percent retention would make his cap hit a much more palatable $3.465 million.
From a Capitals perspective, Garland could be the additional top-six forward that general manager Brian MacLellan has been searching for. Over the past four seasons since Garland became a full-time, NHL regular, only 22 right wingers in the league have tallied more points than him (176). In that timeframe, he has outscored names like Alex Tuch, Troy Terry, Vladimir Tarasenko, TJ Oshie, Tom Wilson, and Nino Niederreiter.
The Capitals also may have the defensive depth that Vancouver could be interested in. With Hardy Haman Aktell and Lucas Johansen both having somewhat surprisingly solid preseasons, the Capitals now have a bit of a logjam on the backend. Haman Aktell, Johansen, Rasmus Sandin, Alex Alexeyev, Martin Fehervary, and Vincent Iorio are all under the age of 25 and need regular minutes to continue their development.
Although Garland does chip in points, evidenced by his 46 points (17g, 29a) in 81 games last year, he isn’t your prototypical scoring winger. The undersized forward has been labeled as a pest in the league in the past due to his high-energy style of play and willingness to play physical in the dirty areas on the ice.
“You’re an angry little elf,” Flyers forward Travis Konecny once called Garland.
So, in theory, Garland can play on all four forward lines which is not something that someone like Anthony Mantha can do. And, Mantha’s well-documented situation with the Capitals will need to have a conclusion before the Capitals can even entertain acquiring Garland due to the salary cap.
Mantha currently makes $5.7 million against the cap on a cap-strapped Capitals team and so far has either been the team’s 13th forward or deputized in a fourth-line role this season.
Screenshot via Canucks
