Conor Garland's market is beginning to take shape.
The Columbus Blue Jackets, Winnipeg Jets, and Nashville Predators are among the teams interested in the Vancouver Canucks winger, reports Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman.
Vancouver reportedly granted Garland permission to seek a trade. The 27-year-old switched agents Tuesday and is now represented by Judd Moldaver, whose list of clients includes Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews.
The Canucks are hoping to free up $1 million to $2 million in cap space with a trade and would prefer a defenseman in return, Friedman adds. Vancouver dressed 17 skaters in its season opener since it couldn't afford to recall a player to fill in for injuries due to cap constraints.
The Blue Jackets are an obvious match. They have over $2 million in cap space, per CapFriendly, and are reportedly looking to trade a blue-liner. In particular, Columbus has a surplus of right-shooting defensemen, which would be ideal for Vancouver's left-heavy blue line. Adam Boqvist and Andrew Peeke are potential fits.
The Predators are the only team of the three that could afford Garland's full $4.95-million cap hit, as they have $7.8 million available. Nashville also has an abundance of right-shooting defensemen. Luke Schenn likely isn't going anywhere after signing a three-year deal as a free agent in the summer, but the club could make Tyson Barrie, Alexandre Carrier, and Dante Fabbro available.
The Jets have $2.3 million in cap space. Logan Stanley, a 2016 first-round pick, is a possible trade candidate after Winnipeg made the 6-foot-7 defenseman a healthy scratch for the season's first two games.
Garland tallied 17 goals and 29 assists in 81 contests with the Canucks last season. The 5-foot-10, 165-pound forward scored a goal in the team's season-opening 8-1 win over the Edmonton Oilers while skating on the top line. His underlying numbers over the last three campaigns are stellar.
Garland has three seasons remaining on his contract. The Canucks acquired him from the Arizona Coyotes in the 2021 trade that also brought Oliver Ekman-Larsson to Vancouver.
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