The Vancouver Canucks signed one of their young free agents today. Zack MacEwen has signed on for another two years at $825,000 per year.
Zack MacEwen Signs for Two Years
Not the biggest name for the Canucks, MacEwen brings much-needed size and youth to the team’s fourth line. The 6′-3″ centre originally signed with Vancouver in 2017-18, plying his trade with Utica that year. His first taste of the NHL followed soon after, earning call-ups of four games in 2018-19 and 17 in 2019-20. Those 17 games had him on the right wing, where he’s more likely to make an impact in the NHL. He showed he deserved to stay with five goals and six points while averaging less than ten minutes of ice time. As general manager Jim Benning put in on his February call-up:
https://twitter.com/BatchHockey/status/1229840959870914560
He was highly enough thought of to get an invite to The Bubble in Edmonton. Once there, he played in six postseason games, not registering a point. He did get nine minutes in penalties and seven shots on net. He was also put in front of the net on the power play, an unlikely position for the near future. As GM Jim Benning mentioned.
What This Means
While some of his time was with Bo Horvat, more likely he’s going to be filling a fourth-line role. That being said, if he can continue to contribute the occasional goal he’ll have a permanent job in Vancouver. It’s not entirely a pipe dream. He scored 37 goals in 155 AHL games, though in quite a different role. Given how hard he has worked to reach this level, he’s not going to release it easily. The Canucks need to fill those spaces when their bottom-six veterans’ contracts expire. Having a 24-year-old ready to step in is exactly what the team needs. Odds are good he’ll become a fan favourite soon enough.
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