Canucks and Jets pull trade as Schmidt waives clause to facilitate move

Nate Schmidt wanted out of Vancouver and his wish came true on Tuesday night.

It has been reported by many sources that the Canucks are trading the defenseman to the Winnipeg Jets. Per TSN's Darren Dreger, the return from Winnipeg is a 3rd round pick in 2022.

Pending the trade call the Winnipeg Jets and Vancouver Canucks are completing a trade that sends Nate Schmidt to the Jets. Schmidt has to waive his NTC to facilitate.
— Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) July 27, 2021

Once complete, the Jets send a 3rd round pick in 2022 to Vancouver for Schmidt. https://t.co/8HSNbQdyRT
— Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) July 27, 2021

Nate Schmidt to WIN is closing in....
— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) July 27, 2021

The Canucks will not retain any of Schmidt's $5.95M AAV for four more years in the transaction : the Jets take the full contract on.

Schmidt didn’t live up to expectations in Vancouver after coming in a trade from the Vegas Golden Knights. While he was very dependable on the Canucks’ blue line, Schmidt saw a significant drop in his defensive play as well as his offensive production, scoring just 15 points in 54 games played last season.

It was believed around the league that there are many teams who were interested in trading assets to acquire Schmidt’s services. The New York Rangers, Boston Bruins, Philadelphia Flyers and Florida Panthers might have been in the mix, especially if the Canucks had agreed to retain salary, but the Jets came out on top.

Per Dreger, Schmidt agreed to waive his no-trade clause to facilitate the move.

Interesting fact in this transaction: last offseason, Schmidt was acquired from the Vegas Golden Knights last fall for a 2022 third-round pick. Same return this time around for the Canucks.

Schmidt gets out of Vancouver as he had hoped.