Canucks make Multiple Moves... This has Major Implications

Thursday night in San Jose, one Vancouver Canucks forward played more minutes than anyone on this team. But going in today, that player is now on injury reserves. And it's Filip Hronek yet again. The Canucks led the Sharks 2-0 after two periods. Then San Jose scored three goals in four minutes and took the lead late in the third. Hronek was battling for puck behind the Sharks net with With his head down, he didn't see Darnell Nurse coming. Nurse hit him hard along the boards, Filip took a minute with trainers, then came back and played the final 2 minutes and 56 seconds. Sharks captain Macklin Celebrini was already on him, and Filip had his head down, watching the puck. He was never going to see it. Jeff Patterson wrote, and I quote, Filip took a hard hit from Nurse late in the third, but finished the game. And then Friday came around. He wasn't at practice and the team made it official. The Canucks placed Filip Hronek on injury reserves with an upper body injury and recalled Jacob Quillen from Abbotsford in the same move. But quickly before we get into that, if you guys are enjoying daily updates around the Canucks from reports, trades, rumors, anything you can think of, it's completely free to hit that subscribe button. We're so close to our goal of 10,000 subscribers. So if you're enjoying it, hit that free subscribe button. It means It means the absolute world. And here's what we know and it's moving pretty fast. Before practice a team spokesperson said Hronek would not take part. He's been evaluated for a re-aggravation of the upper body injury he had earlier this season. And the spokesperson said not head related. Ben Kuzma posted that Hronek was held out of practice, evaluated for a heavy upper body hit from Nurse, and that he may have aggravated the shoulder muscle injury from the preseason. Head coach Manny Malhotra said, He's being re-evaluated for an upper body injury, not his head, which is good. On the timeline, he said, So we'll see over the next couple of days how it pans out. And for Saturday against Toronto, I think we're going to give him the day off and re-evaluate on Sunday. Then came the IR move, and that means he'll miss a minimum seven days. What the team hasn't said with Filip yet is the return date or what the injury is. There's no timeline on when we will see him again. That's a lot more than just having the day off, and with him being placed on IR, that brings us to the part that makes it hurt even a little more. This is a shoulder that he's already lost 8 games to to start this season. September 24th, his first preseason game against Edmonton. Heedle's skate collided with referee Riley Brace and he went into the boards. GM Ryan Johnson said, As nasty as that looked, he came down on his shoulder in more of a muscular strain of the shoulder. Johnson called it week to week. It'll be a week to week thing, but nothing at this point is alarming. And he added, unfortunate bounce for a guy that's been through so much. At that point, the plan was that he'd miss the start of the regular season. He was never ready for opening night. He made his season debut October 15th against Florida and had an assist in each of his first two games. Then he went five games without a point. Now he's sadly back on the list, and this wasn't a freak thing. Last season, he played 12 games. In February, a deflected shot hit him in his face and ended his season. Daily Faceoff's Scott Maxwell called it the best horrendous luck in the health department in his NHL career. And it's so sad because every time he just gets so close, there's something holding this guy back. So what did the Canucks lose here? It's more than just a body. Thursday, Heidle played a career-high 22 minutes and 13 seconds, the most of any Canucks forward, and put three shots on net. He's been playing as a top-two center for Manny Malhotra, and this is the last year of his deal. He signed a four-year with the Rangers at $4.43 million a year, and he's set to be a free agent next summer. He came over from the Rangers in the JT Miller trade on January 31st, 2015. Before this season, he had five goals and nine points in 27 games as a Canuck. His best season is still 2022-23 with the Rangers, 22 goals, 45 points in 74 games. That's the player Vancouver has been waiting to see for two years. Ben Kuzma says Paul Cotter moves to the middle if Heidle cannot go against the Leafs. In Friday's practice groupings, Marco Rossi is expected to take on a bigger role and has one assist in his last 11 games. All of it for a team that's 3-11-1, one day after a 3-2 loss. And this is the second move that did happen today. The Vancouver Canucks need a center with Phil Lapidi going down, and with this, they recall the forward from Abbotsford that just cannot stop scoring. Two weeks ago, Jacob Quillen was a part of the Toronto Maple Leafs. Now he's on the Vancouver Canucks, and the Leafs come to town Saturday. He's 24, 6'1", 204-pound center from Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. Nobody drafted him. He played three years in college and in 2023 national title game against Minnesota, he scored the overtime winner 10 seconds in. Before that, he scored 27 points in 20 games in the BCHL. And in the last year there, he put up 46 points in 39 games and was named the ECAC's best defensive forward. He was the most outstanding player of the tournament. Toronto signed him as an undrafted free agent in 2024. And in January 2025, made his NHL debut in Ottawa. He played just over 5 minutes after knee-on-knee hit in the first period. Last season with the Marlies, he put up 36 points in 40 games, and 9 points in 19 playoff games, on a team that won them the Calder Cup. The year before that, 2024-25, he had 37 points in 67 games with the Marlies, 18 of them were goals. This season, he had no points in four games with the Marlies. Then, on October 15th, the Canucks sent fan favorite Atu Ratu to the Toronto Maple Leafs for Quillen and Brandon Burr. How did he take it? He said, When I first got the call, I was pretty shocked. And then, I'm glad to be somewhere I'm wanted. It gives me a confidence boost for sure. And confidence boost this kid got, because when he got to Abbotsford, the numbers got silly. Abbotsford started 0-2-1. He joined for the home opener on October 17th, and they won five straight to reach the top of the Pacific Division. In his first five games, he has five goals, two assists, seven points, and a plus-minus eight. He's been playing between two quick wingers. He said, they're two hounds, play with a lot of speed, so it's been fun. Against Calgary on October 25th, he scored 1-0-1 into the game, scored again at 17-28 of the third to make it 3-2, and added an empty netter for a hat-trick in a 4-2 win. And he did it at the top-line center, with Braden Coates out with a lower-body injury. When asked what fans should know about him, he said, I play with pace, speed, physicality, and battle. I play a 200-foot game. And I feel like it can play penalty kill. I feel like it can play power play. Before any of this, Jacob Fraser wrote that, quote, It wouldn't be a shock to see one or both earn a call-up to the NHL sooner rather than later. That was before the call. Now it's Friday, and he's in the NHL. So what does this mean for the team exactly? Has the center of the team been leaning on heavy for minutes? Quillen is the center. Rick Tocchet hasn't said how he'll use him. Vancouver called it an open question whether Quillen slots into the middle or lower down against Toronto. I already told you what he'd say to them. Whether the team needs a win, it's just here to help them win at all costs. Think about this revenge arc. A month ago, he was a part of the Toronto Maple Leafs organization. Now recalled to Vancouver and projected to go in and play that team as a centerman that needs one. The Canucks had an emergency at center, and that glass was down in Abbotsford. On paper, it's three points in 24 NHL games and a very hot start to the AHL, but it's more than this. This is an audition for the young Ford, and this is a very open lineup. And Filip Diashvili's out for a minimum of seven days after being placed on IR. That gives the kid a multiple day stretch and game stretch, as this audition will continue. So here's what to watch. Saturday is Quillen's first test. And with Filip Diashvili, hopefully next Sunday is his. But I've been your host, Mark Pye. Hope you guys enjoyed this. Leave your comments on everything down below because I love reading through each and every one of them. Take care, Canucks fans. Let's beat the Leafs tomorrow, and I'll see you in the next one.