The Vancouver Canucks failed to take advantage of their bye week. They looked every bit rusty in an ugly 5-2 loss to the Edmonton Oilers. Here are three things we learned.
For Vancouver Canucks fans looking for a positive in this one, look no further than the NHL standings. A 5-2 loss to the Edmonton Oilers has the Canucks sitting at 28th-overall in the NHL, meaning they’re that much closer to (hopefully), landing the top pick in the 2018 Draft.
Other than that, the Oilers didn’t do a whole lot we didn’t know already. Without Bo Horvat, the Sedins and Brock Boeser must do virtually all the scoring. The team still needs three more quality defencemen if they want to be a playoff team someday. And oh, Jacob Markstrom isn’t showing any signs of being a true No. 1 goalie for the long-term.
The Canucks have now lost 14 of their last 18 games. There’s no falling behind the woeful Arizona Coyotes or Buffalo Sabres for 31st and 30th, respectively. But Vancouver is just three points up on the Ottawa Senators for 28th in the NHL.
For the third consecutive year, the Canucks just might fall into the bottom-three in the NHL standings. As long as they get Dahlin (or a top-three pick), then it may be worth it.
On top of that, let’s take a look at three takeaways from this brutal 5-2 loss to the surging Oilers.
Sedins ramping up trade value?
During a discussion of Saturday’s Headlines, Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston noted that Daniel and Henrik Sedin are hoping to come back for an 18th NHL season with the Canucks. With the way the twins have been playing as of late, why not? They still have it.
But you can’t help but wonder if the Canucks could ask the Sedins if they want to take one shot at a Cup together at the deadline. Rick Dhaliwal of News 1130 did have this interesting tidbit to share, for what it’s worth:
Agent J.P Barry on the Sedin twins future :"Initially we were going to talk at the end of the year but I'm sure some discussions will take place before the trading deadline." #Canucks
— Rick Dhaliwal (@DhaliwalSports) January 19, 2018
Henrik does have five points in his last five games, though he was held pointless against Edmonton. But Daniel extended his point streak to five games. You just can’t help but wonder if other general managers are looking around.
There’s a 99.9 percent chance the Sedins stay here til the end of the season. But if a trade is possible at the deadline, they’re picking the right times to step up the offence.
Where is the secondary scoring?
Once again, some of the Canucks bigger names weren’t able to contribute any offence. It’s very unfair for the 37-year-old twins and a rookie in Boeser to have to carry the load without Horvat.
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Jake Virtanen has one goal in his last nine games. Loui Eriksson scored his first goal in over a month last Sunday, but was held out of the net once again in this one. Sam Gagner failed to score a goal for the fifth consecutive game. Markus Granlund now hasn’t scored in his last 12 outings.
Really? This is what happens? Virtanen was supposed to excel under head coach Travis Green, who got him going in the AHL last year.
Eriksson is paid $6 million a year to *maybe* score 10-15 goals? Gagner and Granlund follow up career seasons with this?
The Canucks were supposed to be rolling four effective lines this season. But as usual, it’s the top line or bust. Don’t blame Green’s system. The guys have to start stepping up their efforts.
Brandon Sutter is back
Brandon Sutter has had a major impact since returning to the Canucks lineup last Sunday. He scored the game-tying goal against the Oilers — six days after an overtime winner against the Minnesota Wild.
Sutter was all over the ice on Saturday, playing 18:14 and winning 67 percent of his faceoffs while logging 3:15 on the penalty kill. The 28-year-old is easily this team’s top defensive forward, and it showed aplenty in this one.
Next: Bye, Buy or Bi. The Vancouver Canucks will soon
The Canucks aren’t making a late season surge to get into the playoffs. But Sutter is already showing how much he means to this team. He excels in the shutdown role and gives this team a reliable faceoff man. We’ll see how much he contributes down the stretch. But boy, the Canucks could use more performances like this.