Save for the acquisition of Tanner Pearson and a minor swap that netted prospect Linus Karlsson, the Canucks had a quiet Monday leading up to the NHL trade deadline.
Vancouver is mired in a three-game losing streak but is still just six points shy of the eighth seed in the Western Conference. With one final chance to either improve or completely break down the roster, the organization kept things relatively intact.
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“We weren’t going to trade away picks today and if you’re not willing to do that, it’s hard to be in on the big deals," Canucks general manager Jim Benning said on Monday. "We’ve done a good job drafting and we want to continue to do that to rebuild the team.”
Leading up to Monday, the future of injured alternate captain Alex Edler was the big storyline surrounding the team. Edler, 32, is on the injured reserve with a concussion and has not suited up since Feb. 4.
In 38 games this season, the defenceman registered five goals and 20 points. Benning had indicated that the team hoped to extend the former All-Star and those talks escalated last Friday, according to TSN.
Edler -- in the final season of the five-year, $30 million deal he signed in 2013 -- was not willing to waive the no-trade clause, according to Benning, which limited the Canucks' options.
"We've negotiated in good faith to try and get a deal done," Benning said. "We'll continue to work on (that). Some teams phoned in the meantime and asked about his availability. We contacted the agent, and he wouldn't waive his no-trade, so there was no options there."
With Vancouver hoping to make some noise in the postseason chase, the impending return of a player Benning labeled "our best defender" improves those odds.
"Alex has been a great player for us for a long time, and we'd like to continue for him to be part of our team, part of our group, so we're going to continue to try to figure things out there," Benning added.