The Canuck Way Mailbag: Playoffs, Virtanen, Tryamkin, more

Are you a fan of the Vancouver Canucks and want to talk about it? Ask a question on Twitter and read our responses as the weekly Canuck Way Mailbag returns.

It’s been a while since The Canuck Way did a weekly mailbag, but thankfully, that’s over now. As a website that is dedicated to bringing great Vancouver Canucks coverage to our followers, I believe it’s time to start getting the fans more involved.

Starting now, our readers can expect a weekly mailbag where you as a reader can reach out to the writers here and ask questions you’d likely want answers to. Follow @FSTheCanuckWay on Twitter, comment on the mailbag tweet that I will be sending out at the end of each and every week, and wait for a response in the weekly mailbag! Okay, let’s jump right into it, shall we?

There are a few names that come to mind, but this year it has to be Kevin Fiala. The soon-to-be 24-year-old had a breakout season in 2019-20 for the Minnesota Wild and if it wasn’t for his team-leading efforts, the Gopher State probably wouldn’t have qualified for a play-in spot at all this year.

Pacing for a 65-point campaign before the shutdown, Fiala was robbed of the chance of crushing his previous career-best by nearly 20. Nonetheless, the native of St. Gallen, Switzerland potted an impressive 54 points (23 goals, 31 assists) in 64 games, and he used his raw playmaking ability to make sure that happened.

He’s a smaller player, not very physical, and the Canucks shouldn’t underestimate his talents head-to-head against Elias Pettersson. He’s still considered the underdog one-on-one, but don’t sleep on Fiala’s quick and sneaky power play moves. He’s calm, patient, and knows exactly when to strike. Don’t be surprised to see him keeping up with Petey in each and every aspect of the game.

This is a great question and one that’s very difficult to answer considering the team hasn’t played a game together in nearly four months. But going off what we’ve seen from the team during the 2019-20 regular season, the Canucks need to make sure they play better defense in their own end. Jacob Markstrom is an absolute wall, but he can’t do everything himself. The Canucks gave up way too many shots against this year, and that needs to change.

Secondly, I’d say Vancouver could be better on the PK. Alex Edler and Chris Tanev did the usual good work expected of them, but beyond their two veteran defenders, Vancouver struggled to have solid PK help. Tyler Myers was often caught way out of position, and Brandon Sutter‘s so-called, “elite penalty-killing ability” often looked like it needed work. The PK was 16th (80.5%) and average. The Stanley Cup doesn’t do average.

Thirdly, Vancouver could make better decisions with the puck in the offensive zone when they’re trying to get the job done. Not that they don’t get the puck in the net often enough (because they do), but Minnesota does a much better job at taking advantage of their high scoring opportunities. The Canucks find themselves in a do-or-die situation. There are no second chances this year. It’s a quick five-game series and Vancouver needs to capitalize when they have the chance.

In my opinion, Alexis Lafreniere could quite possibly turn out to be a generational talent in the National Hockey League and the Canucks should be ecstatic if they’re lucky enough to win the first overall selection. Jokingly, I don’t think Vancouver will ever have that much luck, but all jokes aside, this kid is the real deal.

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He might not be blowing up Sidney Crosby‘s numbers with the Rimouski Oceanic of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, but he’s the best thing to happen for them since. Selected first overall, the winger put up 80 points in his first year, followed up by two 100+ point seasons as the captain.

His involvement in the World Juniors this year was second to none. 10 points in five games were enough to capture a gold medal, and his presence on the ice stood out across the world’s best talent at the junior level more than any other player.

Add him to the Canucks roster for the start of next season and this team immediately has the best top-six in the west or quite possibly the entire league. He’d be an instant favorite for the Calder and he’d give Pettersson’s rookie record a run for its money. He’s not the next Great One, but in time he’ll build himself an impressive NHL resume.