Crossing The Pacific: The 2014-15 Season

The Canuck Way begins a weekly look into how the Vancouver Canucks division rivals are doing in several different categories. We start with a look back into the 2014-15 season.

The 2014-15 season is over with just two rounds of the playoffs left to be completed. So how did the teams in the Pacific Division do this season? How did they perform in the playoffs? What impact will the season have on the team’s future?

Let’s take a look at the Canucks rivals and how they did this season, presented from worst to first.

Arizona Coyotes

The Coyotes had one of the best defenses in the NHL this season. Oliver Ekman-Larsson just continued his rise to being one of the elite defensemen in the NHL. However, everything else didn’t go so right. Mike Smith had a down year after a few great seasons. The Yotes were third-worst in the league when it comes to goal-differential with a -102 difference. They only allowed two less goals then the Buffalo Sabres and eleven less the league-worst Edmonton Oilers.

Goal-scoring was a problem for Arizona. Ekman-Larsson was the only Coyote to score over 20 goals with a total of 23. The highest-scoring forward was Sam Gagner with only 15 goals. Shane Doan and Mikkel Boedker had 14. Obviously, when Max Domi and Anthony Duclair make the team next season, they will be expected to help raise the team’s goal total.

Edmonton Oilers

What can you say about the Oilers? They were one of, if not the only team in the bottom five of the league that wasn’t actively tanking. They got off to a bad start again under Dallas Eakins which cost him his job. They did pick up their play after Todd Nelson took over but never climbed out of the NHL’s basement. Their reward for that: Winning the Draft Lottery and the right to select Connor McDavid.

The Oilers weren’t the worst in the goal scoring department. What their problem was allowing them. It’s been no secret that goaltending and defense have been their Achilles’ Heel for the past five or so years. That needs to fixed sooner rather than later if they want to improve, even with McDavid. With Peter Chiarelli and Todd McLellan in charge now, I believe it will.

San Jose Sharks

Now it’s time for the two surprise disappointments in the Pacific Division.

For the first time since the 2002-03 season, the Sharks missed the playoffs. If that’s not reason to believe that the current core of the Sharks has fallen, I don’t know what is. Antti Niemi was another goalie that had a down year, which was bad timing considering he is slated to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1.

The Sharks were actually fourth in the Pacific when it comes to goals scored. What failed Sharks was their defensive play and goaltending. Niemi will probably be let go and they will elsewhere on the open market or look at making a trade.

Los Angeles Kings

No one expected the Los Angeles Kings to miss the playoffs the year after winning the Stanley Cup. Was it fatigue from playing far into the playoffs for multiple seasons, or was it just that they were too cocky and thought they didn’t need to play at their best during the regular season?

Just missing the playoffs by two points, one thing that really failed the Kings this season was their shootout record, going 2-8. Playing 10 shootout games, had they just won even half of those they would have finished third in the division. Things will change with the amount of free agents they have. They don’t have enough money to bring everyone back.

Calgary Flames

Now, for the pleasant surprise of the entire NHL.

The Flames came out of nowhere to be one of the top three in the Pacific. They were even first in the Pacific when it comes to goal differential with them scoring 25 more goals than they allowed. In the competitive top-end of the Pacific, that’s pretty good.

Calgary earned the reputation as a blue-collar team that just kept working no matter how hard the work got. They were the NHL’s best when it came to wins after trailing going into the third period. You could never count the Flames out of a game. That continued in the playoffs where they continued to surprise by beating the Canucks in the first round. However, they weren’t able to get past the powerhouse Anaheim Ducks.

Anaheim Ducks

Speaking of those Ducks, their season is still going. Currently in a series with the Chicago Blackhawks, the Ducks were the third-best team in the NHL this season, behind only the New York Rangers and Montreal Canadiens.

The Ducks only had a +10 goal differential but were 10th in the NHL in goals scored. Frederik Andersen had a good season but I’m sure the Ducks would like to up that difference next season. They have the power to outscore most teams in the NHL, but they shouldn’t have to.

It only took nine games for the Ducks to eliminate both the Winnipeg Jets and Calgary Flames.

Next: Should Canucks Re-Sign Richardson?

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