Canucks: 3 questions facing Travis Green in 2021
The Vancouver Canucks need excellent coaching from Travis Green next season. Here are three of the biggest questions he’ll be faced with in 2021.
The Vancouver Canucks are a team with incredibly gifted players, but the success of last season wouldn’t have been possible if it wasn’t for quality coaching from their bench boss, Travis Green.
In his first NHL playoff appearance as a coach, Green impressed and pushed the Canucks further than anyone thought possible. Vancouver eliminated the Minnesota Wild and knocked off the 2019 Stanley Cup champions before losing to the Vegas Golden Knights in a hard-fought seven-game series.
For an expected bubble team who hadn’t won a playoff series since 2011, the Canucks took down some pretty stiff competition and eliminating each team required critical adjustments to be made on the fly by Green. He did an incredible job in giving his team the best chance to win and because of that, the Canucks were just one game away from a trip to the final four. Not too shabby for a first-timer.
Now, Green is set to return for the final year of his contract with the Canucks. Regardless of the fact that Vancouver lost key players Jacob Markstrom, Tyler Toffoli and Chris Tanev in free agency, the expectations next year will remain lifted. Let’s dive into three of the biggest questions that could face coach Green in 2021.
Will the Canucks offer Green a contract extension?
In a way, it’s pretty hard to believe that Green is already entering the final year of his first NHL coaching contract. He’s had his ups and downs with the club, but overall there is a general feeling of appreciation for Green and he has the Canucks heading in the right direction.
He holds an NHL coaching record of 102-103-28, but considering he got his NHL career started under a rebuilding Canucks core, that’s more impressive than it sounds. In the last two years, he’s started to build a winning culture in Vancouver and a lot of other teams took notice, especially after their impressive playoff run this summer.
“He’s a great coach — he really is. He reads the game well and there was never a doubt he was going to be big for us in the playoffs,” said Jay Beagle in an interview with The Province.
That successful season and playoff run begins and comes with a trusted locker room and having mutual respect for all his players. And having been in the Canucks’ system since 2013 as the head coach of the AHL’s Utica Comets, Green has built a long and trusting bond with the players that are starting to form this team. The connection runs deep. The team is like a family and that has a lot to do with the way their coach runs the operation.
“Travis wants to win so bad and, as a player, you want that in a coach. He’ll do whatever it takes and that’s all you can ask for. He wants to get the best out of his players and he does just that.” said Bo Horvat in a separate interview with The Province.
Given the possible step back this offseason, a playoff appearance might not be necessary for Green to secure himself a contract extension, but it’ll again be a reasonable goal for him to set for the team. From there, Green will have another crack at defeating the NHL’s best teams and the likes of Elias Pettersson, Quinn Hughes and Thatcher Demko can run wild.
“When you ask me if I want to stay in Vancouver, of course I do. It’s not even a question in my mind. I can’t imagine winning a Stanley Cup in any city but Vancouver.” said Green in an interview with Iain MacIntyre.
The clock is ticking… but if for whatever reason Benning and Green can’t come to terms on a new contract, there will be a lot of outside interest to acquire his services. He’s quickly appeared on the radar of the National Hockey League and a lot of teams would swoop in and try to reel him in.
Will Green give Canucks’ prospects a fair shake?
Vancouver had a lethal top-six in 2019-20, but when it came to their bottom-six they weren’t all that good. In fact, the Canucks had one of the worst bottom-six forward groups in the NHL last season and have been among the league’s bottom feeders for three or four years now.
As an NHL player, Green was a bottom-six grinder and as a coach, he likes to run his team to the beat of that same tune. Unfortunately for the Canucks, their bottom-six hasn’t been able to hold up to the speed and quickness of today’s NHL.
Maybe it’s finally time for Green to consider a new approach to how he deploys the bottom-six? As much as he feels the need to have a trusted veteran presence, the veterans within the Canucks’ system are burning out and there are prospects waiting and ready to be given an opportunity.
The GM himself believes it’s time for the team to get younger. Benning recently joined The Starting Lineup where he stated that in 2021, “When we start off the season, we’re going to be younger.”
So how far does Green decide to take Benning’s demands next year? If Green truly decides to put every roster spot up for the taking, Loui Eriksson, Brandon Sutter, Jay Beagle Antoine Roussel and Jordie Benn could all be subject to demotion.
Following a good showing at training camp this upcoming season, players like Nils Hoglander, Zack MacEwen, Jayce Hawryluk, Olli Juolevi, Brogan Rafferty and Jack Rathbone will all have a chance to steal a roster spot. But just how many are truly available? Only Green knows the answer to that!
Can Green get the Canucks back into the playoffs?
Making the playoffs will be the tallest task for Green to check off his list in 2021. As Vancouver nearly won three straight playoff series’ in 2020, expectations will be higher and the Canucks’ core will want another taste.
Back to prove themselves, 2021 will have a similar feeling to it. Vancouver being underdogs once again will feel the blow of losing Markstrom, Toffoli and Tanev in free agency. But with players like Pettersson and Hughes, you can never really count them out.
Green will have to get creative in coming up with the best possible way to supplement his franchise players, but a return to the playoffs isn’t impossible if he can figure it out.
The addition of Nate Schmidt and Braden Holtby can make up for a lot of the lost damage, however, Green will need to be smart with how he pieces the rest of the team together. The depth chart isn’t nearly as thick as it was last year and Green will be forced to find a way to make it work with the second wave of young players.
Final thoughts…
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2021 will be a very interesting year for Green as he fights for a new contract and another Canucks playoff berth. The pandemic won’t make things any easier for anyone, but it’ll be fun to see how this situation unfolds.