Stecher, Hutton, and Schenn
The three defencemen above are players who had me interested after last night’s game. Prior to his injury, Ben Hutton was logging career-high minutes and was being deployed in all sorts of situations. For the most part, Hutton was always up to the task.
His partner before he got injured was Troy Stecher. The Richmond product has had a solid year, and will likely be a strong candidate to win the Canucks’ Unsung Hero team award this year.
Stecher and Hutton ate up huge minutes together while Alex Edler was down with an injury. They showed great chemistry with one another, and it was tough for Hutton to have to go down while both he and Stecher were finding their groove together.
Last night, in Hutton’s return to the lineup, the two were reunited again. It got me thinking about how when this team is ready to be competitive again, I mean really competitive, Stecher and Hutton could make an excellent third pairing for the team.
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Speaking of third pairings, Luke Schenn has done an outstanding job of making the most of his opportunity with the Canucks this season. Acquired a couple of months ago from the Anaheim Ducks, nobody expected Schenn to have any kind of impact on the Canucks.
Schenn reported to the Utica Comets as soon as he was acquired, and most people thought he’d spend the rest of the year there before becoming a free agent. Then an injury to Chris Tanev and Erik Gudbranson being traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins gave Schenn an opportunity to step into the lineup.
Schenn has made good on that opportunity and has become a fan favourite amongst Canucks fans — especially with his performances as of late. He has stuck up for Pettersson when teams were taking liberties on him, and did the same for Hughes last night.
He also broke the Canucks’ franchise record for hits in a single game the other night. Schenn is playing exactly like someone who is fighting to stay in the NHL, and in my opinion, the Canucks should definitely re-sign him in the offseason.