Boeser confident about striking deal with Canucks

Restricted free-agent forward Brock Boeser isn't worried about securing a new contract with the Vancouver Canucks.

"I feel confident we're going to get the deal done and everything's going to work out," Boeser said, according to Jessi Pierce of NHL.com. "I love Vancouver. The organization, the city, the fans, everything's great there, and I want to be there for a long time."

Boeser finished as runner-up for the 2017-18 Calder Trophy after breaking onto the scene with 29 goals in 62 games during his rookie campaign. The 22-year-old marksman followed that up with 26 goals and a career-high 56 points last season.

Vancouver has just over $5 million in projected cap space, according to CapFriendly, and may need to get creative in order to accommodate Boeser.

On the plus side, the Canucks won't have to worry about any outside pressure from opposing teams. The 6-foot-1 winger is not eligible to receive an offer sheet from another club because he played fewer than 10 games in 2016-17.

"He's a core player and a building block for our group," general manager Jim Benning said. "We have a plan in place and we're going to continue to talk with Brock and his agent and get that figured out.

"If we can move players, it makes it easier, but if we can't move players we still have a plan in place to be (cap) compliant. One option is to go into (long-term injury reserve) with (Antoine) Roussel because with his injury he is probably not going to be back until November, December."

The Canucks selected Boeser 23rd overall at the 2015 draft.