Kiefer Sherwood’s motor always runs hot.
The raw hockey horsepower the feisty Vancouver Canucks right-winger generates is admirable. It has led to a team-high four goals in his first seven games and ranking second in league hits with 32 to set the standard for push, pace and pursuit. The timing couldn’t be better.
Sherwood is on an expiring contract and his grinding longevity speaks to a love of the game. A two-year commitment by the Canucks at just $1.5 million US annually is the currency afforded those who must keep proving themselves. Not much glory, but a lot of guts to maintain some stake in the NHL.
At age 30, Sherwood is supposedly on that other side of judgment, maybe more now vulnerable to injury, fatigue and falling from favour. However, his durability has resulted in only two career injuries in six NHL seasons and missing just seven games.
But can he keep banging bodies, causing havoc, get to the net, and finish?
Consistency is everything and, arguably, it could be harder to come anywhere near his league-record 462 hits last season and building on a career-high 19 goals. But if you watch Sherwood, witness his stern resolve, and outspoken willingness to drag the Canucks into the fight, you see someone driven to beating those aging odds.
“For Kiefer, it’s the consistency,” Canucks general manager Patrik Allvin told Postmedia. “Learning to play with structure and playing a two-way game. We know his tenacity, speed, pace, physicality and shot were really good last year. We’re excited to see him take another step.
“We like Kiefer a lot, and he fits in with the group.”
That’s not surprising.
Kiefer Sherwood checks Leon Draisaitl of the Oilers earlier this month.
Sherwood got on the Canucks’ radar by driving them crazy during a tension-filled, first-round playoff series with Nashville in 2024 as a menacing bowling-ball winger. He would take runs at anybody, even Canucks captain Quinn Hughes. Logic dictated get him to play for you, not against you, because he’s never satisfied.
“(Hughes) was more excited about Sherwood than anyone because he pissed the whole team off in the playoffs by playing hard,” recalled Allvin.
Sherwood’s underrated skill resulted in his first career hat-trick last season, which had the Rogers Arena faithful chanting his name. But he knows his place. His 36 goals with the Colorado Eagles in 2020-21 have faded into distant memory because the AHL is not the NHL.
“I’ve been scrapping for it my whole life,” Sherwood stressed of gaining management faith. “That’s easy to figure out. I love it here, my teammates and the market.”
The well-travelled Sherwood is a hockey lifer and survivor. The Columbus, Ohio native wasn’t drafted and laboured through four one-year contracts, which offered little security, but incentive to keep opening eyes. Sounds a lot like former Canucks winger Dakota Joshua.
He never got more than two-year commitments before landing a four-year, $13-million extension at $3.25 million in annual average from the Canucks on June 27, 2024. He was 28 and rewarded for getting his game in order under former bench boss Rick Tocchet. Joshua had a career season in 2023-24 with 32 points (18-14) and ninth in the NHL, with 244 hits.
He also had added eight post-season points (4-4) in 13 games to prove he could produce when it matters the most.
Brett Howden of the Vegas Golden Knights and Kiefer Sherwood of the Vancouver Canucks battle for the puck during a game at Rogers Arena on April 16.
The separator is that Sherwood doesn’t have to be told or sold on what to do and how to do it in practices or games. He’s a self-starter, a culture carrier who can play on any line in any situation. He kills penalties, scored on the power play Sunday, and makes most of his 16:27 in average ice time.
He is not a scrapper by trade, and has only fought nine times. He knows how to agitate without getting annihilated.
So, let’s cut to the chase. What is all this testosterone and tact worth?
The obvious comparable is Joshua, but an extension hurdle might be term. You can envision Sherwood’s camp pushing for four years and the Canucks countering with three. He turns 31 in March, but his overall value to the Canucks is greater than Joshua because of versatility, flexibility and durability.
That could also entice several suitors in free agency, although it is hard to imagine Sherwood opting to leave Vancouver, a place that feels like a second home.
With a rising salary cap, it’s not a stretch to suggest a three-year deal at $10.5 million, with an annual average value of $3.5 million, should be palatable. It’s more than winger Nils Hoglander, 24, who has two more seasons at $3 million annually. He struck for a career-high 24 goals in 2023-24 before plummeting to just eight last season.
If the Canucks balk at three years and $3.5 million in AAV for Sherwood, more term and less money might be the answer, but then the age factor becomes bigger. His camp could look at the landscape and point to big winger Tanner Jeannot, 28, who’s being paid well for being tough and not producing much.
He signed a five-year, $17 million free-agent deal with the Boston Bruins on July 1 that has $3.4 million in AAV. He did pot a career-high 24 goals with the Nashville Predators in 2021-22, but only has a combined 20 goals the last four seasons with three teams. He does have two goals in his first eight games with the Bruins this season.
Jeannot’s expiring two-year contract carried at $2.67 million cap hit.
