Vancouver Canucks: Markus Granlund Injury Makes Tanking Inevitable
By Jeff Godley
The list of Vancouver Canucks injuries continues to grow, as Granlund joins Eriksson, Gaunce and Markstrom on the sidelines.
The Vancouver Canucks probably aren’t going to lose any games on purpose. But as injuries chip away at their roster, they may end up tanking all the same.
Yesterday, they announced that forward Markus Granlund would undergo season-ending wrist surgery. His wrist, apparently, has been an issue for several years.
Vancouver had plenty of injury trouble last season, with key players like Brandon Sutter, Alexander Edler and Dan Hamhuis missing significant time.
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This season, it has been more of the same. Only Henrik Sedin, Daniel Sedin and Luca Sbisa have played every game so far.
Derek Dorsett was the first regular to be shut down for the season. He went for neck surgery and has been gone since Nov. 22. Erik Gudbranson soon followed on Dec. 16 — like Granlund, he had surgery for a nagging wrist injury.
A month later, Anton Rodin returned to injured reserve. His knee, which was surgically fixed around 12 months previous, had still not fully recovered. As if that wasn’t enough, Rodin was one of several Canucks to contract the mumps in late February.
Vancouver needed everyone to stay healthy this season to have a fighting chance at a playoff spot. Instead, they got all of the above.
Granlund May Be the Last Straw
Granlund’s injury will hit the Canucks particularly hard.
It comes at an awkward time. Brendan Gaunce, Jack Skille and Loui Eriksson are currently out with injuries. Newcomer Nikolay Goldobin is still recovering from an illness, and Jacob Markstrom has won the lottery with both an injury and an illness.
Granlund is yet another regular who is unable to play. And of all their injured players, he has been the most important on the scoresheet. His 19 goals are a career-high, and only Bo Horvat has scored more for Vancouver this season. Since the All-Star break, Granlund has 12 points in 19 games, which is again second only to Horvat.
Last game against the Edmonton Oilers, Granlund joined Horvat and Sven Baertschi on a new-look line. Together, they combined for 10 shots on goal. Seven came from Granlund himself, who also led all forwards in ice time with 21:21.
His injury is another big loss to an already anemic offense. A loss it definitely cannot afford.
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If the team was planning on winning many games down the stretch, they needed Markus Granlund. Without him, they will need to rely too heavily on depth players like Joseph Cramarossa, Michael Chaput — and, yes, Jayson Megna.
They should get offensive players like Eriksson and Goldobin back soon. But in the meantime, they play the Chicago Blackhawks, St. Louis Blues and Minnesota Wild on the road. By the time those players return, the Vancouver Canucks may already have locked up 29th place.