[Dhaliwal] Looks like defenseman Ian Cole will hit the free agent market on July 1st
Looks like defenseman Ian Cole will hit the free agent market on July 1st.
More on Donnie and Dhali at 10am
— Rick Dhaliwal (@DhaliwalSports) June 5, 2024
by udun
@Vancouver Canucks
40 Comments
🫡
Cole was a decent top 4 D during the regular season and in round one, but his age caught up to him, time to move on
Was a perfect fit for what we needed last year. Hopefully, he gets a huge payday since we’re not signing his cheques.
Honestly I think people were being too harsh on him. He was great against the Preds and then lacerated his ankle, which naturally is going to cause huge issues for an guy already starting to lose his mobility. Especially against a team as fast as the Oilers
That said, you could absolutely see his age getting to him as the year wore on. He can’t sustain a full NHL schedule anymore. I’d be fine with him as a cheap 6/7D that splits time with Juulsen but I’d expect he wants more money/opportunity elsewhere.
Apparently he got cut in the ankle from a skate and was playing with 8-10 stitches during the Edm series. That really explains his drop in performance.
Canucks are cooked next season, Allvin and JR are not just gonna have to work magic again but do even more. Brutal plan to trade a scoring winger AND futures for Lindholm, cupboard is bare
He was excellent for a 1×1 number 6/7 dman
Damn, he should definitely join the oilers. He might outscore Bouchard from the blue line.
He cost us the Edmonton series lol. So many things happened in that series but it’s crazy how bad some of those first few games were
I appreciated his time here. He did more or less what we wanted from him. And I really liked his interviews. Hope he gets a great opportunity!
Canucks would have beaten the Oilers in 5 games had Ian Cole made slightly better plays on about 3-4 plays.
Now the Oilers can pick him up for real.
He was a very welcome addition to the team this year. I’ll miss him and his interviews too. He definitely has a future in broadcasting or even management when he eventually retires, he’s very well spoken.
He was good for the entire year until we needed him the most. Will miss him and his presence 100% but after Edmonton series thank god
If Cole is gone, we need:
One Left Shot D-man (Brenden Dillon? Big Z?)
Three Right Shot D-men (Myers, Hronek and 1 more assuming Juulsen is our 7)
If management thinks we can sign either Dillon or Zadorov then it makes sense to move on from Cole.
Generally liked him this season though until his injury/EDM series.
Best wishes
I was a big Ian Cole fan, and he really filled the vacuum left by Luke Schenns departure. Count my in the club of people who wanted to see him back for another year. He was a good soldier.
Perhaps this is a sign that the Canucks are getting something done with Zadorov? Brendan Dillon possibly?
He played well here but it’s time to look elsewhere
[removed]
I wouldn’t have been against bringing him back as a #7 guy to replace Juulsen but it’s one of those things, would he have accepted the role and the contract matching that role.
I know he had a series from hell against the Oilers but his larger body of work proved he’s a solid vet, has great insight into the game, and is one of those guys who sounds like he’s not just a player but also another coach on the ice and in the room. He’ll be missed.
I honestly really liked Ian Cole this season. Yes, he arguably wore an Oilers jersey in the 2nd round, but he gave us an honest effort. He had a fine season as a whole, especially considering his age.
Best to let him test the market and for us to explore other options. I can see us circling back the day after free agency day if he is still available.
I think this is fine. $3M for him this year was steep, if we can get him back at $1.5-2M that’s ok.
While I didn’t always appreciate his play (– I would often hold my breath when he had the puck in our end), one thing that he was really great at was his interviews. Articulate, clear, charismatic, positive and useful insights to contribute. Arguably, one of the best on the team in that regards.
*Holland picks up phone*
He’s not worth $3 million right now, but I suspect he will get $3 million on July 1st.
That’s a shame. I would’ve been happy to bring him back for a year at a lower cap hit. He was our #3 defensemen for a large portion of the season
Wow. A cut on the ankle caused him to shoot the puck into his own net in overtime. Crazy.
People have negative perceptions about him right now, and it’s possible that he’s hit the wall/is about to hit the wall due to age, but we’re going to miss him on the blue line. I’m expecting a pretty big step back next year based on how many players seem to be eyeing other opportunities. I know Allvin and JR pulled rabbits out of hats in terms of building up our depth, but that’s hard to do. I’m less optimistic that we easily fill in all these gaps. Hitting a free agency home run one year doesn’t mean you’re sure to do it again.
Ian Cole is not a playoff performer. He was horrible for Avs, Bolts and Canes. He was a serviceable regular season player for us but we need to start scouting players with that extra gear now that we’ve established ourselves.
He was already playing for a different team in round 2.
So long traveler
I wasn’t sure what we were getting with Cole when we signed him here and most of what I’ve heard was negative but I really grew to like him. He was an eloquent speaker and I’ve always played his interviews in full because he was engaging, thoughtful, and gave non-typical hockey interview answers. He also definitely showed his playoffs experience and much needed vet presence during the Nashville series. 🫡
You dont sign veterans like him for more than 1 or 2 years at a time. He likely wanted a 2 year minimum from us, but quite frankly, thats not a direction this org takes and really makes their job easier in terms of who’s staying and who’s going.
Thank you for your service
In the Casey DeSmith game he was defending the net like a man after praising the team’s defense.
Fare thee well, tank commandant.
Good
Can the Canucks offer someone a bag of pucks to take him off their hands?
Thank god.
He was fairly solid, even if he did score more goals against us than McDavid did that series.