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Trade speculation: Mason Raymond available?

Mason Raymond

Time to throw another name in the ol’ trade rumor hat (we actually have a trade rumor hat at PHT headquarters; it’s a top hat and we wear it often) – though to be fair, this one’s not so much rumor as it’s speculation.

Canucks beat writer Jason Botchford of the Vancouver Province suggests that speedy forward Mason Raymond might be made available prior to the Feb. 27 deadline:

He’s still young. He’s 26 years old and a former 25-goal scorer. He’s mature and well-liked, not only in the Vancouver Canucks locker-room but in the management offices at Rogers Arena, where the “speed kills” motto is so deeply entrenched it shouldn’t surprise anyone if it was said every time someone shook GM Mike Gillis’ hand.

What Mason Raymond is not, is producing. And that could mean his days in Vancouver are numbered.

Raymond is a pending RFA that’s been squeezed out of a top-six role by the Canucks’ acquisition of David Booth. He’s no longer getting much time on the power play, which is where he scored eight of his 25 goals in 2009-10, his best NHL season to date.

For a team that needs to get faster and has holes in the top six, Raymond could be a fit.