The Canuck Way Mailbag: Burke, Virtanen, all-canadian division, more
In this week’s mailbag, we answer your Vancouver Canucks questions on Brian Burke, Jake Virtanen, the team to beat in an all-Canadian division, and more.
News surrounding the NHL and the Vancouver Canucks has been scarce, except for the occasional appearance by general manager Jim Benning on Sportsnet 650. We are no closer to the start of the 2020-21 season and the last noteworthy transaction came in the form of the Canucks’ acquisition of Nate Schmidt from the Vegas Golden Knights on Oct 12, which was nearly two months ago.
The last major free agent signing was Alex Galchenyuk to the Ottawa Senators on Oct 28 and we have not even seen a minor signing since Dominik Kahun went to the Edmonton Oilers on Nov 1. Basically, there has been no movement in the NHL for a very long time. As a result, new stuff to talk about has ground to a halt.
That’s why the mailbag is so great! So let’s get to some more of your questions, shall we?
In honour of Brian Burke's new book, what's your favourite Canucks' Burkie story?
— Jasmine Yen (@jasminesports) December 4, 2020
Brian Burke was probably one of the most animated GMs the Canucks ever had. He was a quote machine after press conferences and was always good for an interesting interview. My favourite was definitely the time he defended Daniel and Henrik Sedin with his famous quote,
Sedin is not Swedish for ‘punch me, or headlock me in a scrum.’
He never hesitated to publicly defend his players and he was always honest in every interview he did. That’s probably what I admire about him the most.
My favourite Burke story will always be the plethora of trades that he executed to acquire two of the most legendary players to ever don a Canucks uniform, the Sedin twins. There’s not a day that goes by where I am not amazed at what he was able to accomplish in the span of a few minutes. He didn’t know at the time what the Sedins would do in the future, but little did he know that he was shaping the Canucks franchise for eons to come.
We all know the culture the Sedins established in Vancouver, and Burke was a major reason why it was able to happen in the first place. Canucks fans everywhere will be forever grateful to him for that.
If Holtby is starter at the beginning of year how long of leash does green have for him?
— Randy Dhillon (@RandyDhillon) December 4, 2020
If Braden Holtby outperforms Thatcher Demko in training camp and wins the starting job for opening night, I don’t think that means he’s the de facto starter for the Canucks. Even though we don’t know what the official schedule will look like, I think it’s safe to say that it will be compressed.
If that’s the case, Travis Green will have to use both of his goaltenders equally, so in essence, there will be no starter. I think he will probably ride the hot hand whenever possible though, as most coaches do in a 1a/1b tandem.
That being said, Holtby is a veteran of 468 games with a wonderful track record of being an NHL starting goaltender. He’s won a Stanley Cup, Vezina Trophy and is still one of the best goaltenders in the league, despite the off-year he had last season. Demko on the other hand is still getting his feet wet and has only 27 regular-season games under his belt. That’s not to say that he won’t outperform Holtby in 2020-21 though, it’s just that Green might have a shorter leash for him considering his lack of experience.
Out of Juolevi, Rafferty, and Rathbone, who do you think grabs a third-pairing role this season?
— Bill Huan (@bill_huan) December 4, 2020
It definitely will be a toss-up between Olli Juolevi and Jack Rathbone. Juolevi will have the inside track after his positive performance in the playoffs, but if Rathbone blows everyone away in training camp, don’t be surprised to see him snag the spot instead.
Both of them are built for the new NHL and will be pillars on the Canucks’ blueline for seasons to come. Juolevi deserves the chance to prove himself in the NHL this season, so for the sake of his development, he should be the one to get the spot. But, he has to earn it by having a strong training camp, whenever it ultimately starts. If Rathbone is the better defenceman of the two after camp, he should be in the starting lineup over Juolevi.
If it was up to me, I would put both of them on the Canucks’ opening night roster. But we all know that Green will not open the season with two rookie defencemen, no matter how much they outperform the veterans. Nevertheless, it should be an interesting battle to follow when preparations finally get going for the 2020-21 season.
Virtanen, Hawryluk & the all-Canadian division
Benning had some things to get off his chest this week. What were your overall thoughts about what was said in regards to Jake Virtanen and his position on the team moving forward?
— Brayden Ursel (@bkursel23) December 4, 2020
General manager Jim Benning seems to still believe in Jake Virtanen, even though he’s probably caused him to rip his hair out on more than one occasion. In his most recent interview on Sportsnet 650, he said that he gave him some tough love after the playoffs and that he expects a lot more from him in 2020-21.
If Virtanen does not take a huge step forward this season, especially if he’s given a lot of time in the top-six, he will be dealt either at the trade deadline or during the offseason. Like Benning said,
He’s going to have to have a good offseason, he’s going to have to come in excellent shape here for us, and he’s going to have to show us that he’s ready to do the things that we think he’s capable of, or he’s going to get passed by, by some other guys.
Benning isn’t wrong, as prospects like Hoglander and Vasili Podkolzin are coming up fast. Podkolzin will be Virtanen’s biggest competition as he will be joining the team sometime in 2021. His style of play is well-suited for Bo Horvat and Tanner Pearson’s line and given his vast skill set as a two-way forward, he may be the piece that finally completes the ensemble. If Virtanen is smart, he will work like he’s never worked before and come to training camp in the shape of his life.
We all want Virtanen to succeed in the NHL, but I think his time in Canucks’ colours is running out. He has all the makings of a power forward, now it’s up to him to prove to everyone that Benning’s trust in him is justified. If he can’t do it within the two years of his current contract, his shelf life will probably expire in Vancouver.
Where do you see Jayce Hawryluk playing, provided he makes the team after training camp?
— Zaahid Lalani (@zaahidlalani) December 5, 2020
If Jayce Hawryluk makes the team out of training camp, I really want to see him play next to Nils Hoglander (provided he makes the team too) and Adam Gaudette. His style of play should mesh well with those two, as he’s a speedy, high-energy forward capable of putting the puck in the net when given the chance. He’s also physical and has proven to be a positive play driver in the past too.
Hawryluk has limited experience killing penalties, but that should not be the reason he is left off the roster. The Canucks need more offence from their bottom-six this season, and that won’t happen with Loui Eriksson, Brandon Sutter, and Antoine Roussel taking regular shifts. He may not have experience in that role now, but I’m sure if he’s given the chance, he could become a strong penalty killer too. He has all the tools to do it, so why not give him the opportunity to learn the craft from experts like Tyler Motte and Jay Beagle?
Basically, Hawryluk is more valuable in the Canucks lineup rather than in the press box or in the American Hockey League. He brings something they desperately need more of in their bottom-six, offensive potential.
Do you think the Canucks are the team to beat in an all-canadian division?
— Brayden Ursel (@bkursel23) December 6, 2020
I think the Canucks are going to be competitive in an all-Canadian division, but not the team to beat. In my opinion that will be (cringe) the Toronto Maple Leafs. They finally improved their defence with TJ Brodie and Zach Bogosian and still have one of the most lethal offences in the NHL with Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, William Nylander, and John Tavares driving the bus. Not to mention they also have a pretty solid starting goaltender in Frederik Andersen too. As much as I hate to say it, they will be a very tough out in 2020-21.
The Canucks have a lot of question marks going into next season, especially on defence where they lost a veteran warrior in Chris Tanev. He was their best penalty killer and logged a lot of key minutes on the top pairing with Quinn Hughes. Nate Schmidt will soften the blow, but he’s not the same type of penalty killer and rock-solid defender Tanev was.
They also need more scoring and pressure from their bottom-six, which was an issue in the playoffs against the Vegas Golden Knights. I still maintain that if they don’t get more from players not named Elias Pettersson, Bo Horvat, Brock Boeser, and JT Miller, they will struggle mightily to repeat as a playoff team.
Finally, as much as we all loved Demko’s performance in the playoffs, we have to remember that he is still an unproven goaltender in the NHL. Holtby doesn’t exactly inspire confidence either, as he finished the 2019-20 season as one of the league’s most mediocre goaltenders overall. That’s not to say that the tandem won’t do well, it’s just that it’s not a proven strength of the team right now.
So basically, the Canucks could be the team to beat if all the question marks work themselves out. They have the talent and potential to do it, we just have to wait and see if the hockey gods think so too.
Next. Canucks: Mark Donnelly out as team’s anthem singer. dark
That brings us to the end of yet another The Canuck Way mailbag. Thanks as always for your questions, and for all your Canucks news and analysis, don’t forget to follow us on Twitter @FSTheCanuckWay. Until next week, Go Canucks Go!