The Vancouver Canucks have picked up another depth forward, signing Justin Bailey to a one-year two-way contract. Bailey failed to receive a qualifying offer from the Philadelphia Flyers last month and became an unrestricted free agent.
Bailey, 24, was originally selected in the second round of the 2013 draft but has failed to establish himself in the NHL to this point. Playing 63 games for the Flyers and Buffalo Sabres, the 6’4″ forward has just nine points. If given a bigger opportunity in Vancouver there is a possibility he can produce a little more offensively, but the likelihood of him becoming an impact player seems low at this point.
Still, adding more depth for the bottom-six at a reasonable price is never a bad thing and Bailey has shown he can clear waivers in the past. That means he might end up ticketed for the Utica Comets if he can’t carve out a role in training camp. The Canucks do already have a huge number of forwards that will be competing for the final few spots, making Bailey’s chances even more slim. Not many of them have the size he brings however, something that head coach Travis Green might appreciate on his roster.
Travis will only appreciate the size as long as something of substance is included with that, i.e. Net-Front Nuisance, Grunt-protector for Pettersson, Boeser, et al.