The Canucks (33-11-5) are tied with the Boston Bruins for the NHL lead with 71 points and signed general manager Patrik Allvin to a three-year contract Wednesday.
"We looked at different options, what was available, [and] Elias is a player that our team played against a lot of times here over the years that I've been here and for myself, being familiar with him and watched him since coming up in Sweden, I felt that giving us a right-shot center, a player that competed at the highest level for years and being a really solid 200-foot player makes us harder to play against and gives our coaching staff more options in in the top six,” Allvin said Thursday. “That was why we were attracted to Elias.
“I felt that our bottom six, the way it's constructed right now and the way they're playing, have found a chemistry and identity how to play every night and they've been very consistent. I feel our top six needed to improve a little bit with a caliber player like Elias to find more consistency going down the stretch, and we all know the matchups going down the stretch here the last 33 games it's coming down to, tough, tough matchups, and that's where you need your four lines to be strong and in the two-way game. That's where we felt that adding a piece like Elias here for the cost for now, but potentially for the future as well, was something that we feel strong about.”
Kuzmenko had 21 points (eight goals, 13 assists) in 43 games for Vancouver this season after having 74 points (39 goals, 35 assists) in 81 games last season, his first in the NHL.
“I’m excited to come to Calgary and join the Flames,” Kuzmenko told the Flames website Thursday. “It’s a great opportunity for me to come to a new team, a new city and contribute to the offense.”
The 27-year-old forward was undrafted and signed a one-year, entry-level contract with the Canucks on July 13, 2022. He agreed to a two-year, $11 million contract ($5.5 million average annual value) on Jan. 26, 2023, and can become an unrestricted free agent after next season.
“My shot is a strength," Kuzmenko said. "I like to be creative in the offensive zone. I feel like I will also be able to help the power play and I’m looking forward to that opportunity.”
The Flames (22-22-5) are sixth in the Pacific Division and trail the St. Louis Blues and Nashville Predators by five points for the second wild card into the playoffs from the Western Conference.
"Obviously I've been communicating with teams all year, but probably after Saturday morning, I talked to Patrik and they came with an offer," Calgary general manager Craig Conroy told NHL.com Wednesday. "I think I talked to a lot of teams and it was more, 'What are you looking for?' and 'What are you thinking about?' conversations. They threw a real offer at me, and I circled back with all the other teams just to kind of work through to see where we were at.
"[We] went back to Vancouver, we added things. We went back and forth, the negotiation process, trying to get more to see what deal worked for both sides. Probably today we got right down to the end. I circled back with all the other teams and they put their best offers forward, and this deal just made the most sense to me."
Brzustewicz, 19, has 69 points (eight goals, 61 assists) in 47 games for Kitchener of the Ontario Hockey League. He was a third-round pick (No. 75) by the Canucks in the 2023 NHL Draft.
Jurmo, 21, has two points (one goal, one assist) in six games for KooKoo in Liiga, the top professional league in Finland, after having one assist in 28 games for Ilves. Vancouver selected Jurmo in the third round (No. 82) of the 2020 NHL Draft.
"We're trying to build this thing forward and we want to build a team that's consistently in the playoffs and eventually wins the Stanley Cup -- that's the main goal," Conroy said. "Right now, this was the best thing for the team. We're losing a great player but we're getting back a very good goal-scorer in Kuzmenko. It's exciting to be able to add some young prospects and some draft picks. It gives us some more balance throughout our organization."
NHL.com director Pete Jensen and independent correspondents Kevin Woodley and Aaron Vickers contributed to this report
