The Vancouver Canucks have reportedly traded defenceman Olli Juolevi to the Florida Panthers. In return, the Canucks received defenceman Noah Juulsen and forward Juho Lammikko.
General Manager Jim Benning announced today that the club has acquired defenceman Noah Juulsen and forward Juho Lammikko from the Florida Panthers in exchange for Olli Juolevi.
DETAILS | https://t.co/sdeeneAOQR pic.twitter.com/yNCjuDj8H4
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) October 10, 2021
The Olli Juolevi Trade Has Happened
Juolevi has been in trade talks for a little while. After the training camp started and Vancouver played their pre-season games, what was just a rumour became reality. The Canucks wanted to trade the young defenceman and wanted it to happen before the start of the season. Now, it has apparently happened – quicker than one could expect. He would require waivers to be re-assigned to the AHL and this way they won’t have to risk losing him for free.
The 23-year-old was drafted by the Canucks with the fifth pick in the 2016 NHL Draft. After spending the 2016-17 season with the London Knights of the OHL, Juolevi was loaned to the Liiga, playing the 2017-18 season with the TPS. In 2018 he returned to North America to play for the former Canucks AHL affiliate, the Utica Comets. He stayed with the Comets until 2020, playing 63 games throughout two seasons. He scored three goals and 48 points in the AHL.
However, when it came to the NHL, the defenceman struggled a lot both offensively and defensively. Juolevi made his regular-season debut on January 13 and kept going in and off the lineup, due to his inconsistency – something coach Travis Green doesn’t appreciate. He also struggled to translate his offensive success to the NHL level, scoring only three points in 23 games. He wasn’t cracking the lineup this year and trading him is the best the Canucks could do for both the team and the player.
What This Means For The Future
The Canucks are not losing much in this trade, considering Juolevi was never a big contributor to the team. Besides that, fellow defenceman Jack Rathbone has been doing all the right things during the pre-season. The fresh start can be a good thing for Juolevi and Florida is getting a good player that just needs some polishing. Maybe the Panthers can be the ones to help him find his way back to the player he was before the injuries.
Main Photo: Embed from Getty Images
