There’s no sugarcoating the Vasily Podkolzin trade.
When the Vancouver Canucks dealt Podkolzin in the summer of 2024, they believed there wasn’t room for him on their roster. Seems ludicrous now, because Danton Heinen, Daniel Sprong, and Nils Aman all had spots in the opening-night lineup that year.
Podkolzin, who had recently turned 23 years old, was going to need to clear waivers to go to Abbotsford, so the team held their nose and accepted a fourth-round pick from the Edmonton Oilers as compensation. The gritty Russian winger was coming off a season split between Vancouver and Abbotsford, which saw him score no goals and just two assists in 19 NHL games.
“We would like to thank Vasily for his time here with the Canucks,” Patrik Allvin said the day he traded Podkolzin. “Podz put in a lot of work both on and off the ice, and we wish him all the best in Edmonton.”
Allvin got his wish, because Podkolzin is having the time of his life in Edmonton.
Now 25, Podkolzin has been put into the best spot in hockey, playing on a line with Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. But he’s not just a passenger on that line. The Oilers love his work ethic and work along the boards.
They loved it before he found his scoring touch, as well, inking him to a three-year contract after he scored just eight goals during his first season in Edmonton.
That contract is looking like a bargain now, as Podkolzin ranked third in the NHL with seven goals heading into Monday.
Where did the Canucks go wrong with Podkolzin? While his production is obviously inflated due to his linemates, it’s undeniable that he has flourished in Edmonton. His former head coach, Bruce Boudreau, thinks Canucks management gave up on him too early.
“He’s the hottest guy in hockey right now,” Boudreau said in an interview with Edmonton Sports Talk’s Dustin Nielson and Eric Holt.
Boudreau, who coached Podkolzin for parts of two seasons, isn’t surprised that it took time for him to establish himself in the NHL.
“He’s exactly the type of player that’s going to take a few years in the league,” Boudreau said. “Once he got accustomed to everything and there was belief in him, he’s a really good player, and you know what, he’s a good person, too. I loved him in Vancouver. The first year he got [14] goals; I had him as a rookie, and he was really good.
“I think Vancouver, like a lot of things, gave up on him way too early. But he’s a solid top-six forward for Edmonton now.”
“They looked at me like I had two heads”
Boudreau took over as Canucks head coach midway through the 2021-22 season. (Bob Frid/USA TODAY Sports)
Asked why Podkolzin took time to develop, Boudreau had a few theories.
“He was young and didn’t speak English,” Boudreau said of Podkolzin, who was 20 years old during his rookie season. “When you come over from Russia, you’ve got to learn the game. They thrust him into a top-six/nine role right away and expect him to do an awful lot.
“I remember our first meeting when Jim Rutherford and the GM, we sat there, and I said, ‘Hey, listen, I think [Nils] Höglander and Podkolzin should go to Abbotsford to get their game going a little bit. We’re asking them for big minutes here, and they’re really young guys coming from a different situation.’ And they looked at me like I had two heads. So that went about as far as anything else I said in Vancouver went. So, that was that right there.”
Podkolzin and Höglander played the entire 2021-22 regular season in Vancouver, before each spending significant time in Abbotsford in 2022-23.
Hindsight is 20/20, but it is the job of management to have good foresight.
We’ll see in the coming years how Ryan Johnson fares. The new Canucks GM has stated his dislike for yo-yo’ing young players between the NHL and AHL.
His first test will likely come with Braeden Cootes, who has six points (3-3-6) in six games with the Abbotsford Canucks already. When is it time for the Canucks to call up the 19-year-old?
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