Who should be on the Vancouver Canucks’ first power play unit?

The Vancouver Canucks have had their struggles on the power play ever since the Sedin’s retirement.  What could the solution be?

In 2017-18, while Henrik Sedin and Daniel Sedin still ran the power play, the Canucks were ranked ninth in the league for percentage and scored 53 power play goals. While the twins’ final season was not the best their power play has ever been, it was still one of the finest in the league. When combined with the rocket shot of then-rookie Brock Boeser, the Canucks were a force with the man advantage.

Fast forward to the 2018-19 season. The Sedins are gone, Boeser remains, and Elias Petterson joins the fold. The possibility of having yet another strong year of the power play encapsulates the fanbase. Can you imagine? A power play with Petterson, Boeser and Bo Horvat? Wow, that would dominate the league.

Fast forward again.

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At the end of that campaign, the power play dropped to the 21st ranked and scored a measly 43 goals. Although anemic for most of the year, the power play did heat up near the end with the introduction of offensive specialist defenseman Quinn Hughes. 

Never have the Canucks had a player like Hughes, who can completely control a power play. Alex Edler, who has held the power play point for many years is good, but not as elite as Hughes is. In the first game of the season against the Edmonton Oilers, there were a few things peculiar about the Canucks power play. The two things that stood out to me was the fact that Hughes was on the second unit, and that Horvat was also on that unit.

For the Hughes situation, he will find his way onto PP1 eventually — he’s just too good. As for Horvat, there is some debate.

The unofficial captain (for now) was on the second string, split up from the team’s other two best players. There is an argument for this, as it gives the second unit more depth and effectively creates two scoring lines for the power play. Although there is also a clear downside, there is no dominant scoring center on the first unit.

A few things are for certain, Petterson and Boeser have their sniping area and those two aren’t going anywhere. Even if Petterson is going to take faceoffs, he will always revert back to his sharpshooting spot.

The game started with Josh Leivo on the left side, with Petterson in the middle and Boeser on the right. By the end of the game, Horvat had replaced Leivo.

So all of this leads to the main overarching question. Is it better to have one loaded power play or to have two strong(ish) units?

For me, the answer is to put Horvat permanently onto the first unit and play him in the bumper position in front of the net. Horvat is an elite passer, while also being a physical force in the crease. In the bumper he can throw the puck around, allowing him to use his elite vision to get the puck to the more skilled players in Petterson and Boeser.

The trio of forwards are too good not to eventually do well, and with new power play specialists on the defensive core — there is a high probability that the power play will be much more successful than last season, despite them being made of similar personnel.