The Vancouver Canucks have improved more than any Pacific Division team
There’s still time to go in the offseason, but so far, the Vancouver Canucks have improved the most out of any team in their division.
Maybe it’s too early to award an offseason winner, but as of right now, the Vancouver Canucks have by far made the most improvements to their lineup, and it’s why I think they could surprise a lot of people next year and challenge for one of the top three spots in the Pacific Division.
Let’s take a quick glance at what all of the other teams in the division did to improve their teams. The Calgary Flames swapped goaltenders with the Edmonton Oilers, as Mike Smith signed with the Oilers and Cam Talbot signed with the Flames on July 1st, both to one-year deals.
Just recently, the two teams swapped James Neal and Milan Lucic via trade. To me, the Oilers are the winners out of the two Alberta teams, as they were able to rid themselves of Lucic’s anchor of a contract while adding a fairly consistent 20-goal scorer who wasn’t a fit with his new team. Neal will likely get an extended look on the first line playing on Connor McDavid‘s wing, so to me, the Oilers have more upside from this trade. But is it enough?
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No, not in my opinion. The Oilers still have a giant question mark in goal with the tandem of Mikko Koskinen and Smith, and didn’t address their blueline at all. Neal, Josh Archibald, Tomas Jurco, and former Canuck Markus Granlund are the Oilers’ big forward acquisitions this offseason. Lucic going to the Flames isn’t anything to get overly excited about, either, but hey, maybe he finds his game with a change of scenery?
The San Jose Sharks chose the addition by subtraction route, and tossed the keys to their young stars such as Timo Meier and Kevin Labanc. They said goodbye to long-tenured Sharks Joe Thornton and Joe Pavelski, along with Gustav Nyquist. The Sharks have some young talent coming up, but I’m not convinced that they will be any better than they were last year.
The Arizona Coyotes added Phil Kessel, and in my opinion, they are the team in the Pacific who, alongside the Canucks, improved the most this offseason. The Vegas Golden Knights really didn’t do much, as they are currently in a cap crunch. The LA Kings also are a team who really didn’t do much this offseason.
The Canucks on the other hand, brought in J.T. Miller and Micheal Ferland to provide legitimate secondary scoring in their top six, and reconstructed their blueline by bringing in Tyler Myers and Jordie Benn in free agency. They also made key depth moves to try and combat the injuries that are oh so common in Vancouver.
It makes sense that the Coyotes and the Canucks would make the most moves because they’re among the teams in the Pacific Division who didn’t make the playoffs last season. But when you look at this newly constructed Canuck roster, something tells me that this team, on paper, has what it takes to end the playoff drought; especially compared to the rosters of other teams in their division.
Unfortunately, hockey is played on ice, not paper, so we will have to see if the Canucks moves pay off next season. What do you think Canucks fans? Will the Canucks’ offseason improvements push them over the hump and into the Stanley Cup Playoffs? Let me know what you think in the comments section below.