Good News: The Canucks announce a three-year extension following their best season ever, with a board statement
Nils Höglander, a forward with the Vancouver Canucks, has agreed to a three-year contract extension worth a total of $9 million (X link). The new agreement, which has an average yearly value of $3 million, will start in the 2025–2026 season. Höglander’s new contract will nearly increase his cap cost as he enters the last season of a two-year, $2.2M agreement.
The 23-year-old shot a staggering 20% with a +23 plus/minus rating last season, setting career highs in games played (80), goals (24) and points (36). After that, he played in 11 games for the NHL playoffs, recording one goal and one assist.
The Canucks decided to sign Höglander to an extension rather than waiting until the conclusion of the season because they were pleased with how he entered training camp this year. The future iteration of Höglander will determine whether or not the extension is a good value. The former second-round selection had a poor season in 2022–2023—he appeared in just 25 games and contributed just three goals and six assists. During that season, his shooting percentage was a mere 10.3%.
The Bockträsk, Sweden native, who is about to begin his fifth NHL season, has played in 221 games for Vancouver, scoring 50 goals and dishing out 40 assists. He has also become as something of an analytics favorite. Höglander had amazing possession stats the previous season, with a 53.1% CF% at even strength.
Höglander could just be getting started at this point in his career and wind up being a steal for Vancouver. However, Höglander is not likely to match his shooting % from the previous campaign, which may result in fewer goals being scored. The good news for Vancouver is that Höglander contributes enough points off the puck, so even if his goal scoring declines, his new deal should still be a solid value.
