Canucks of last season had dreams of playing for the Stanley Cup and that certainly could’ve have happened, had it not been for some spotty defense and shaky goaltending by Roberto Luongo. A one hundred point season and division winning season went down the drain, including a 2-0 series lead in the second round of the playoffs versus Chicago. The Canucks were minutes away from taking a 3-1 series lead, but saw that led evaporate, and with it their season. The Canucks should be a better team this season, because a few of their offensive players had breakout seasons, and the roster is full of players that are on the rise or in their prime. This is the time for the Canucks to make a major move in the playoffs. First, they will have to fend off the rebuilt Calgary Flames who should be front runners for the North West division title.
Beginning on defense, a strong point for the Canucks, and something Head Coach Alain Vigneault taught to perfection. The Canucks were one of the better teams in the West in the goals against category, and that was one of the main reasons they went on to win the division title. This season the Canucks are once again deep on defense, and the depth chart is stacked with everyday players. Six players that will get full time work are Willie Mitchell, Sami Salo, Kevin Bieksa, Alexander Edler, Christian Ehrhoff and Mathieu Schneider.
Mitchell had an excellent defensive season and was perfect when playing the oppositions’ best player, or line. His +29 was one of the best ratings on the roster. He also brings strong leadership into the room and onto the ice. Mitchell is also a physical player and is very smart on the defensive end. His scoring touch lacks, but he makes up for it in other ways, which is a perfect trade off.
Kevin Bieksa has been a real nice surprise for the Canucks organization, who was a late round draft choice, and has blossomed into a top defenseman. He plays with a mean streak which is perfect, and has this intimidation about him. In his three seasons with the Canucks, including an injury riddled season, he has always produced points. Look for him to improve on his 43 points from last season, and maybe hit the 50 point mark.
Alexander Edler was one of the players that had a breakout season when he played in eighty games and tallied 10 goals and 27 assists, along with a +11 rating. Edler is a smart player on defense, doesn’t take the body too much, but he has a good sense of the play. To balance him out he is a very good skater, and look for him to maybe jump into a few rushes, or start some on his own out of the zone as he becomes even more comfortable.
In the off season the Canucks signed Christian Ehrhoff to bring another big body that can skate and add a few points here and there. To go along with him, the Canucks already have veteran defenseman Sami Salo. In Salo’s case he is a big body, but isn’t the best skater and looks to be losing some of his skill. The Canucks also went out and signed free agent veteran defenseman Mathieu Schneider. Only time will tell if this forty year old can still play and improve the Canucks’ defense, or make it slower and older. Either way the Canucks do have other defenseman that can easily fill in for him.
Now onto offense an area where the Canucks looked really good with the Sedin twins, Henrik and Daniel. These two have developed at a nice pace and are proven 75+ point scorers each and have also hit the 82 point mark. It wouldn’t be surprising to see them eclipse 82 and maybe score 85 points. Another player that really stepped up his game and could once again play with the Sedin’s is Alexandre Burrows. Last season he broke out for a 28 goal and 51 point season. Hitting sixty points may just happen, if the Sedin’s tally another eighty point season and Burrows plays like last season.
Forming a pretty nice second and third line are Ryan Kesler, Pavol Demitra, Mason Raymond, Mikael Samuelsson, Steve Bernier, Rick Rypien and Kyle Wellwood. Kesler is a smart skating two way player when on the ice and his leadership skills have flourished. Last season he had a pretty good season scoring 26 goals and notching 33 assists. Demitra also had a nice season for a player who may be on the short end of his career. If he can score another twenty goals this season, the Canucks will take it. Samuelsson was a nice free agent signing and knows how to play the game smart and is a proven winner coming from Detroit. He is a good third line player that can tally forty points. Raymond is another player on the Canucks roster that is on the rise with this team and should build on his 23 points from last season. Bernier is a player that has not lived up to his hype when he was labeled as a big body that can skate and score. All he has done in five seasons in the NHL is post mediocre season after mediocre season. His career high in goals scored in a season has been 15. Bernier is only good enough to be a third line player unless he proves he is better. Rypien might get a chance to play full time this season. In Wellwood’s case, he is more of a fourth line player that can also play on the power play. He is a weak player that barely works out, and yet he still managed to score 18 goals.
Two players that may crack the roster this season are Sergei Shirokov and Cody Hodgson. These two have displayed their talents in pre-season and have been wonders so far. It wouldn’t hurt to let Hodgson play this season, because sooner or later he will one day be the captain of this franchise.
Now on to goaltending, an area where the Canucks don’t have to worry about for the next eight to ten years as they locked up All-Star and team captain Roberto Luongo to a long term contract. Injuries shortened Luongo’s season last year and he was well on his way to posting another forty win season. During the regular season Luongo racked up 33 wins in 54 games, compared to 2008 when he won just 35 games in 73 starts. With Luongo in net, it really doesn’t matter what type of defense is in front of him because he is that good. The Canucks should have another good season with Luongo in net.
OVERALL--> THE CANUCKS HAVE ANOTHER GOOD ROSTER IN PLACE, FROM THEIR ALL-STAR GOALTENDER TO A TIGHT DEFENSE AND SOLID OFFENSIVE UNIT.
POSITIVE--> ROBERTO LUONGO FIRST AND FOREMOST. THE CANUCKS HAVE A GREAT MIX OF VETERANS AND YOUNG PLAYERS THAT HAVE MADE A NAME FOR THEMSELVES AND ARE IN THEIR PRIME.
NEGATIVE--> BACK-UP GOALTENDING IS PRETTY WEAK IN ANDREW RAYCROFT.
X-FACTOR--> THIS IS ROBERTO LUONGO’S TEAM AND THE TEAMS SUCCESS ALL DEPENDS ON HOW WELL HE PLAYS.
SLEEPER PICK--> CODY HODGSON IF HE MAKES THIS CLUB. HE HAS GREAT SKILL AND SHOULD TALLY 45+ POINTS.
PREDICTION--> THE VANCOUVER CANUCKS WILL FINISH TOP 5 IN THE WEST, AND WILL BATTLE CALGARY FOR THE NORTHWEST DIVISION TITLE TO THE END.
The opinions and thoughts expressed in this or any other article written by 12nadnuk are of his thinking and what he thinks is correct or close to it in the sporting world. If there are any problems by anyone, 12nadnuk is open for rebuttal and what not, and honest criticism. There is also a comments section, so feel free to post what is on your mind about the article. Thank you for reading.
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