Canucks: Loui Eriksson can show his value in series vs. Wild

Loui Eriksson’s struggles with the Vancouver Canucks have been well-documented, but he can prove his value in the qualifying round.

When the Vancouver Canucks handed Loui Eriksson a six-year, $36 million contract in 2016 free agency, the franchise believed they were getting a multi-time 20 to 30-goal man.

He seemed like the perfect fit for the Sedin twins, after all. Those two worked magic with the likes of Anson Carter, Mikael Samuelsson, Alexandre Burrows and Radim Vrbata. So there was good reason to believe that Eriksson would also shine on the top line.

But Eriksson has never found his footing in Vancouver, and his contract is widely regarded as one of the worst in the NHL. It’s right up there with Mark Messier’s as the most disappointing in franchise history.

Eriksson’s point totals through his first three seasons with the Canucks were 24, 23 and 29. He had six goals and 13 points in 49 games during the 2019-20 regular season. Since joining Vancouver, Eriksson only has 38 goals and 89 points in 245 games.

Although Eriksson hasn’t come close to matching the offensive totals he put up with the Dallas Stars and Boston Bruins, the soon-to-be 35-year-old has at least been one of Vancouver’s better defensive forwards.

Eriksson chews up valuable minutes on the penalty kill, and he proved to be a nice fit on the Bo Horvat and Tanner Pearson line. He’s not playing like a man who’s making $6 million a year, but if Eriksson was making one-third of that, the perspective would be different: A capable shutdown forward who can play his way into the top-six when called upon.

The Canucks will eventually meet the Minnesota Wild in a best-of-five qualifying round matchup to determine who goes to the final 16. This is Eriksson’s chance to come through and display his value to the team.

It’s going to be a different vibe with no fans in attendance and all, but playoff games come with a lot more intensity and energy. Eriksson’s veteran leadership, experience and defensive game could make a difference in a best-of-five against a stingy Wild team.

And who knows? Maybe Eriksson will find some puck luck and provide some timely offence in this best-of-five series, where absolutely anything can happen.

This isn’t to say that Eriksson will suddenly play like a $6 million-per-year forward, but if he can tune in a quality performance against the Wild, he may earn a lot more respect from the fans and prognosticators.