Canucks lose Pius Suter for $8 million contract from Western Conference rival

Billy Heyen

Canucks lose Pius Suter for $8 million contract from Western Conference rival image

There was some doubt all along as to whether the Vancouver Canucks could keep Pius Suter.

Turns out, they couldn't.

It took until late in day two of free agency, but Suter has reached a two-year, $8 million deal with the St. Louis Blues that will pay him $4 million per year, according to The Athletic's Chris Johnston.

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The Swiss forward Suter turned 29 in May, and he's coming off a season with the best shooting percentage of his career.

He probably doesn't have a ton of upside, given that a stat like that points to some statistical regression.

But he also came in below his projected contract value, so maybe that was baked into negotiations.

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Before the 46-point season, Suter had between 24-36 points in each of his first four NHL seasons.

The Blues will surely be happy to get a secondary scoring forward.

But the Canucks shouldn't feel too bad about losing him, either.

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Billy Heyen

Billy Heyen is a freelance writer with The Sporting News. He is a 2019 graduate of Syracuse University who has written about many sports and fantasy sports for The Sporting News. Sports reporting work has also appeared in a number of newspapers, including the Sandusky Register and Rochester Democrat & Chronicle