Canucks trade Horvat to Islanders

The Vancouver Canucks traded All-Star center and team captain Bo Horvat to the New York Islanders for winger Anthony Beauvillier, youngster Aatu Raty, and a conditional 2023 first-round selection, the teams announced Monday.

The first-round pick is top-12 protected for this year's draft and becomes unprotected if it slides to 2024, reports TSN's Pierre LeBrun. The Canucks are also retaining 25% of Horvat's cap hit and salary, according to LeBrun.

"I thought I was going to be a Canuck for life. Things didn't work out that way," Horvat said, according to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman. "It hasn't been an easy year."

Horvat is amid a career campaign, recording 54 points in 49 games, including 31 goals. The former ninth overall pick has accrued 201 goals and 420 points in 621 contests during his nine-year career. Horvat was slated to represent the Canucks at the upcoming All-Star Weekend in Sunrise, Florida.

The 27-year-old joins an Islanders squad that features Brock Nelson and Mathew Barzal and sits sixth in the Metropolitan Division with 55 points.

Horvat is an unrestricted free agent at season's end and carries a $5.5-million cap hit. He's expected to command more than $8 million annually on the open market, which is a price tag the Canucks aren't going to be able to meet.

"I believe we've taken our best shot. The contract we have on the table for Bo right now is fair value for what he's done up to this year, but it's certainly under value for what he's done this year," president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford said on Jan. 16, according to CBC's Karin Larsen.

Horvat said there hadn't been any contract discussions with the Islanders yet, according to Friedman.

Prior to the trade, Beauvillier, 25, sat seventh on the Islanders with 20 points. The Quebec native has a cap hit of $4.15 million after signing a three-year deal in 2021. He'll be a UFA when his contract expires in 2024.

Raty, a 20-year-old Finnish center, notched two goals in 12 games for New York this season. The former second-rounder also posted 15 points for the AHL's Bridgeport Islanders in 2022-23.

It's been a disappointing campaign for the Canucks, who sit near the league's bottom with a 20-26-3 record. The team's front office recently faced heavy criticism for how it handled head coach Bruce Boudreau's dismissal.