The Vancouver Canucks have been criticized for adding three veterans on contracts with term to their youthful roster in free agency.

TSN Hockey Analyst Mike Johnson called four-year deals for 32-year-old Jay Beagle and 28-year-old Antoine Roussel "nonsensical," while the team also added centre Tim Schaller, 27, on a two-year contract.

Canucks head coach Travis Green, however, believes the signings will help relieve pressure off the team's young core, especially when it comes to the penalty kill.

“Our penalty killing was up and down,” Green told the Vancouver Province. “We’ve added some players which is, I think, important. We need guys who can kill penalties.

“The longer you’re in the league, the better the penalty killer you are. Some won’t understand what that means, but there’s a lot of reading plays, and making changes on the fly that you get better at over time.

“It’s an art learned. You just don’t see a lot of young guys come in who are great penalty killers.”

The Canucks ranked 21st in the NHL on the penalty kill last season, finishing with a 78.3 per cent success rate.

As Jason Botchford of the Province points out, both Beagle and Schaller were prominent members of the penalty kill units on their former teams. He notes the addition of the two veteran centres will lessen the load on 23-year-old Bo Horvat.

Beagle and Roussel both carry $3 million cap hits on their new deals, while Schaller is signed for a total of $3.8 million.