Calgary Flames and Vancouver Canucks finalize trade deal

Despite their sooner than hoped for exit from the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the deal that sent Elias Lindholm to the Vancouver Canucks from the Calgary Flames still seems like a homerun. Lindholm, 29, put up 5 goals and 5 assists in 13 postseason games for Vancouver, before the team was eliminated last night by the Edmonton Oilers. With the elimination comes the finalization of the trade for Lindholm.

In exchange for Lindholm, the Canucks gave Calgary forward Andrei Kuzmenko, unsigned defence prospects Hunter Brzustewicz and Joni Jurmo, and first-round and conditional fourth-round picks in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft. That fourth-round pick would have turned into a third rounder had Vancouver managed to make the Conference Final this season. That didn't happen, so it officially remains a fourth.

Lindholm becomes an unrestricted free agent on July 1, and is free to sign wherever he wants at that time. He has not yet said whether he plans to test the market, or re-sign with the Canucks before then. His current contract carried a cap hit of $4.85 million annually, and it's a safe bet that he'll be getting more on his next deal.