When to Pull the Trigger?

The player you see in the picture above is Dan Hamhuis, and he is one of just three defensemen currently on the Vancouver Canucks roster that is pulling their weight, with Ben Hutton and Chris Tanev being the others. What makes Hamhuis different? He's on the other side of 30, whereas Hutton and Tanev are still relatively young, and he's been nicked up in recent seasons, with the latest injury being a shattered jaw thanks to a shot during a December 9 game at the New York Rangers that sidelined him until last Saturday at Calgary. So, why talk about Hamhuis?

He's been a subject of trade rumors and given that it is clear that the Canucks need help on the blue line for both now and beyond, he's the one player that holds the most value for a team seeking short term help in their own end. With Dustin Byfuglien recently re-signed by Winnipeg for five more years and Dion Phaneuf traded to Ottawa, it appears that contending teams are likely to set sights on Hamhuis. It is no secret that the Canucks have been woefully thin on the blue line both in the NHL and in their pipeline, and it was thought that the Canucks would have moved on from Alex Edler, who hasn't played to expectations in recent seasons. For consideration, the Canucks' current six is Hamhuis, Edler, Hutton, Tanev, Luca Sbisa, and Matt Bartkowski. That won't inspire anything other than possible laughter, as Hutton and Tanev are not top pairing defenders at the respective stages in their careers, Bartkowski and Sbisa are terrible, and Edler just needs a change in scenery. Hamhuis, when healthy (emphasis on this point), can be a solid second pairing/fringe first pairing player that can hold things down in his own end. Question is if he does get traded at the deadline, can Vancouver get an NHL ready player on the blue line in return? What about a higher-end prospect? The best Vancouver can do for a top prospect on the blue line is Jordan Subban, and he's a few years away from being a regular contributor on the NHL level.

The issue at hand could have been somewhat prevented had the Canucks either paid more attention to their blue line at the draft (they haven't drafted a defenseman in the first round since 2005, when they took Luc Bourdon) or made ill-advised trades (the Adam Clendening for Gustav Forsling deal last season looks bad in retrospect, since Clendening was moved in the Brandon Sutter deal in the off-season).