NHL trade rumors: Insider drops bombshell claim about Vancouver Canucks ' fairly close' trade prior to Hurricanes' Rantanen deal

Hockey insider Pierre LeBrun has speculated about a potential trade between the Vancouver Canucks and Carolina Hurricanes involving either J.T. Miller or Elias Pettersson.

This comes after the Hurricanes made a significant move in the market by acquiring forwards Mikko Rantanen from the Avalanche and Taylor Hall from the Blackhawks in a three-team blockbuster trade.

LeBrun mentioned that before the trade, the Hurricanes and Canucks were close to making a deal, but Carolina ultimately decided to go with the trade involving Colorado.

"My sense is that Carolina and Vancouver got fairly close on a trade before the Hurricanes went the Colorado route," LeBrun wrote on X.

According to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman, the Carolina Hurricanes were in discussions to make one of two trades with the Vancouver Canucks: one involving J.T. Miller and the other involving Elias Pettersson.

"I was surprised. I knew there was a chance that Rantanen was going to be traded, but I didn't think it was going to be this early. And I also think with a guy like Rantanen, you just feel they're going to work something out, but it couldn't," Friedman said.

"And what I think is safe to say is that the Carolina Hurricanes had this one that they were working on, and they were also working on the potential of one of two deals with Vancouver, one of them involving J.T. Miller, the other involving Pettersson. They were talking to the Canucks about both players. And ultimately, they chose this path," he added.

The Canucks are reportedly exploring the trade market for both players due to an apparent rift between the two star forwards. Notably, of the two, Miller is considered the more likely candidate to be traded in the near future.

Vancouver Canucks almost traded J.T. Miller

The Vancouver Canucks almost traded J.T. Miller to the New York Rangers in exchange for Filip Chytil, but the deal fell through at the final stage.

Reports indicate that the New Jersey Devils are among the teams to have shown interest in Miller lately. It remains to be seen how this situation will unfold in the near future.

As for the Canucks, they currently find themselves three points off the second wild card spot in the Western Conference. The club is on the back foot with a two-game losing streak. They face the league leaders, the Washington Capitals, on Saturday at Rogers Arena.