Hockey Trade Rumors

“I think everybody takes less to play here,” said the 30-year-old Bieksa, who earned $3.75 million US this season. “It’s such a great organization that you want to be here. It’s the culture. It’s like Detroit. If you want to win, you take less. It’s a great team and a great one for a long time, and you want to be a part of that. The bonus is the core guys I’ve grown up with and the strong friendships there. That factors into the decision-making process.

“There’s no need to draw anything out. I’m pretty optimistic we can reach an agreement.”

As for other UFA defencemen, the same will likely occur with Sami Salo, but where Christian Ehrhoff slots into salary-cap considerations may be the only true mystery. Unless you want to debate how long it will take Dan Hamhuis to recover from offseason abdominal surgery, and if Keith Ballard can emerge from the doghouse. Or if defenceman Andrew Alberts is coming back in a depth role.

As for Bieksa, he made it clear his intention is to sign a long-term extension at a reasonable raise for a 22-point, relatively injury-free 66-game season. He was also a team-best plus-32, had 10 postseason points and was a plus-6.

Canucks general manager Mike Gillis was reluctant to discuss contract discussions with Bieksa and Ehrhoff, but indicated interest in bringing Salo back. Free agency commences July 1 and the Canucks have 13 players signed for next season at $45.6 million and the cap ceiling could rise to $63.5 million.

“We’re intending to keep this team intact with the core assets we have, and that’s what I intend to do,” said Gillis. “Right now, I’m very confident [in Bieksa, Ehrhoff] but we just ended, and I didn’t talk to any player during the season about his contract because we didn’t want it to become a distraction and feel like they’re being treated differently — Sami Salo included. We now have bought time to get it done.”

Read more: http://www.theprovince.com/sports/Bieksa+Salo+Ehrhoff+Willing+consider+discount+stick+with