The Vancouver Canucks have traded pending unrestricted free agent Kiefer Sherwood to the San Jose Sharks.
The Canucks acquired defenceman Cole Clayton and second-round picks in both the 2026 and 2027 drafts from the Sharks in the trade.
“We would like to thank Kiefer for all his hard work and dedication in Vancouver,” Canucks general manager Patrik Allvin said in a release. “As an organization, we take a lot of pride in giving him the opportunity to grow and excel as a player. Given where things currently stand and the direction of our rebuild, we felt it was necessary to make a move like this as we continue to build our pipeline. In addition to adding two draft picks, Cole is a right-shot defenceman who will report to Abbotsford.”
Sherwood has 17 goals and 23 points in 44 games this season. He has not played since Jan. 10 with an undisclosed injury.
The 30-year-old winger put up a career-high 19 goals and 40 points in his first season with the Canucks last year.
The 6-foot winger is on the final season of a two-year, $3 million contract that carries a cap hit of $1.5 million.
Originally signed as an undrafted free agent by the Anaheim Ducks in 2018, Sherwood has 55 goals and 114 points in 288 career games split between the Ducks, Colorado Avalanche, Nashville Predators, and Canucks.
Clayton, 25, has two goals and five points in 33 games with the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda this season. He has never appeared in an NHL game and will be a restricted free agent this summer.
The Sharks are sitting in the final playoff spot in the Western Conference entering play Monday, pushing to make the postseason for the first time since 2019.
Canucks set course as sellers
Trading Sherwood comes a week after TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger reported the last-place Canucks were willing to consider all options as the March 6 trade deadline draws closer, including trading centre Elias Pettersson.
“Obviously, every club in the National Hockey League has untouchables, but management of the Vancouver Canucks is now using the rebuild word, so they have to be open for business, open for just about anything, and that might include finally trading Elias Pettersson,” Dreger explained. “Now, we know that there’s been a ton of speculation from a media perspective on Pettersson’s future with the Vancouver Canucks. That was more into the offseason, more last season than to this point.
“I can tell you that there’s been no communication with the agent who represents Elias Pettersson, Pat Brisson, and they would have to communicate directly with Pettersson’s camp because he has the no-move clause.”
The 27-year-old Pettersson has 13 goals and 29 points in 40 games this season. He carries a lofty $11.6 million cap hit through the 2031-32 season on the eight-year, $92.8 million deal he signed in March 2024.
Vancouver has already made what may stand as the biggest trade of this season, with captain Quinn Hughes being moved in December to the Minnesota Wild for a package of Marco Rossi and Liam Ohgren, defenseman Zeev Buium and a first-round pick.
The Canucks have also been weighing trade options for fellow pending unrestricted free agent Evander Kane dating back to the fall.
Currently stuck in a 10-game winless skid, Vancouver has missed the playoffs in four of the past five seasons and eight of the past 10 years dating back to 2015.