Thomas Vanek has been on seven different NHL teams since the 2013-14 season and traded thrice during that time span, so it didn’t come as much of a surprise when the Vancouver Canucks shipped the winger to the Columbus Blue Jackets Monday ahead of the 3 p.m. ET trade deadline.
In return, the Canucks get back veteran winger Jussi Jokinen and 22-year-old centre Tyler Motte.
Vanek is a pending unrestricted free agent and after signing a one-year deal worth $2 million as a free agent last summer has had a strong season with the Canucks.
The 34-year-old is tied for second on the Canucks in scoring with 41 points (17 goals, 24 assists) in 61 games this season. The Canucks kept him out of the lineup for Sunday’s game against the Arizona Coyotes as a precautionary measure to ensure he’d be healthy enough for the Canucks to complete a trade.
“Thomas Vanek is probably one of the best power-play players in the league and a consistent goal scorer and can add some offence to our team,” Blue Jackets GM told reporters Jarmo Kekalainen told reporters.
Only eight players have scored more goals than Vanek’s 350 since he made his NHL debut in 2005.
Motte, a fourth-round pick of the Blackhawks in 2013 has 64 games of NHL experience over the past two years. He had three goals and two assists in 31 games with the Blue Jackets this season in addition to the 11 points he has with the AHL’s Cleveland Monsters.
Jokinen, meanwhile, joins his fourth team of the 2017-18 campaign. The 34-year-old spent 14 games with Edmonton, 18 with L.A. and 14 with Columbus, registering a total of one goal and seven points.
