Arturs Silovs has traded his Canucks jersey for a Pittsburgh Penguins one following a trade that many Abbotsford Canucks fans are revolting against.
The 24-year-old goaltender, who is in his second season of a two-year contract with the Vancouver Canucks and recently helped the Abbotsford affiliate win its first-ever AHL championship, was traded down south of the border in exchange for fellow AHL player Chase Stillman and a 2027 fourth-round draft pick.
Thank you, Art奴rs!
鈥� Abbotsford Canucks (@abbycanucks)
Arty Party MVP forever! Wishing you nothing but the best in Pittsburgh!
Following an incredibly strong season with the Abbotsford Canucks that saw Silovs earn the AHL playoffs MVP title, many fans have taken to social media to express their extreme displeasure with this trade.
this is the end of everything actually
鈥� daily art奴rs 拧ilovs (@daily_silovs)
No surprise Canucks traded Silovs because he's a winner and that doesn't really fit in the Canucks culture.
鈥� Taj (@taj1944)
justice for arturs silovs
鈥� Tommy (@tommykippes2)
The player coming the other way has even less NHL experience than Silovs, who himself has played 19 games for Vancouver and managed a .880 save percentage in the NHL during this time.
Stillman spent less than half a year signed to the Penguins, during which time he never stepped out onto the ice in a Penguins jersey, instead splitting his 2024-25 season between the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and Utica Comets AHL affiliate teams.
However, this trade was far from unpredictable given the depth of the Vancouver Canucks goaltending bench, explained Canucks general manager Patrik Allvin.
"We wanted to give him an opportunity elsewhere as we feel we are very well positioned in goal at the NHL, AHL, and developmental level," Allvin said. "Acquiring a future pick and depth forward will add to our organizational depth."
In addition to having longtime veterans Thatcher Demko and Kevin Lankinen in net, the Vancouver Canucks also brought London Knights goaltender Aleksei Medvedev on board as the second-round pick of the 2025 NHL Draft.
Aleksei Medvedev locking it in. 馃攺
鈥� Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks)
It's a much different goaltending situation over in Pittsburgh, with the Penguins overflowing with promising young talent, which now includes Silovs.
While the team will largely depend on netminder Tristan Jerry, it's unclear who will be sharing the bench with him for the upcoming season.
There are several potential choices, with Silovs and Joel Blomqvist being the only ones with prior NHL experience.
Blomqvist has the advantage of having played 15 games for the Pittsburgh Penguins last season, but with Silovs coming fresh off an MVP season where he achieved a .908 save percentage with Abbotsford, it'll be a fight to see who gets the nod.
Never going to forget game 6 against Nashville. Silovs with a 28 save shutout to push the to round 2. 馃ゲ
鈥� Hughes is the GOAT 馃嚚馃嚘 (@Hughes4Norris)
Silovs was signed to a one-year deal with the Pittsburgh Penguins for $850,000, while Stillman is signed through the 2025-26 season with the Canucks for $863,334.
