Vancouver Canucks Outlook and Predictions Week #23: Reset
By David Joun
The Bottomline
It is time to reset.
What do I mean by a reset? It is time to refocus and aim for more realistic goals for the remainder of the season.
More from The Canuck Way
- Which team won the Bo Horvat trade?
- What to expect from newcomers Anthony Beauvillier, Aatu Räty
- Back to the future: How the skate uniforms became a regular Canucks’ feature night
- Canucks kick off 2023 with disappointing 6-2 loss to Islanders
- 2nd period penalty trouble sinks Canucks in 4-2 loss against Winnipeg
The playoffs are not the goal anymore. Nor is tanking for Auston Matthews. With Henrik Sedin and Chris Tanev injured alongside Jannik Hansen, Alex Edler, Brandon Sutter, and Radim Vrbata to start Week 23, it is time to just make the best of what the team can. The kids are getting their minutes — that is a fact led by Ben Hutton‘s team-leading ice times.
It is time to start resting some veterans and letting the youth run the show even if it raises a few eyebrows and a few more losses along the way.
Alex Burrows has caught a scent of that, too. With news of Nikita Tryamkin coming over from the other side of the Atlantic alongside Anton Rodin and Philip Larsen, veterans are going to be expendable as time passes. Edler will be back. Sutter will be back. Captain Hank will be back. Yes, the current core isn’t moving out overnight, but while the opportunity is here for the youth to become the core of this NHL team who says that they shouldn’t take on the challenge for just a couple of weeks or so?
Mind you, being a kid doesn’t mean one can’t outplay a veteran.
Lastly, I wonder if Tryamkin has a chance of coming over to Vancouver this week. Is there a chance to get him suited up this week? Unlikely, but something to look forward to. Tryamkin would be a perfect addition to have against the Saturday matchup against the Nashville Predators.
Next: Canucklehead Lament: Life is Confusing in Canuck-land
And that’s it! Hope you enjoyed our Week 23 Outlook and Predictions. It is going to be a challenging week, but one that also spells “opportunity” for the youth to make a statement.