We are close to the end of August and that means Vancouver Canucks hockey is right around the corner.
There will be actual hockey to talk about in September. The Canucks will take part in the Young Stars Classic in Penticton for the first time in four years. That runs from September 14 to 18 and Canucks prospects will join the prospects of the Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers and Winnipeg Jets in a round-robin tournament.
The Canucks will have training camp in Whistler on September 23 and 24. Their preseason begins with split-squad games against the Flames on September 25 and their season officially begins on October 12 in Edmonton.
After a long and hot summer, it will be good to have hockey back. The Canucks enter their first full season under a new regime and you should be excited for the upcoming season.
Yes, the team isn’t a contender, and needs to fix the defence but here are four reasons why you should look forward to the Canucks season.
Also, stick around for an announcement at the end regarding the future of this site.
#1: A full year of “Bruce, there it is”
Bruce Boudreau came in as the 20th head coach in early December and he brought new life to the Canucks.
They were a more exciting team under Boudreau. The heavy forecheck resulted in more goals and Boudreau’s tenure started with a seven-game win streak.
Under Boudreau, the Canucks went 32-15-10. That is 74 points in 57 games. On an 82-game pace, that is 106 points, which is pretty good.
Boudreau is heading into his first full year as a Canucks head coach and is one of the best regular season coaches in the NHL. He also has a track record of turning teams around and that showed last season. Could that trend continue this season? Well, the fact that Boudreau has turned the Washington Capitals, Anaheim Ducks and Minnesota Wild around in his first couple of years with them is no accident. So that means, there is a very good chance Boudreau takes the Canucks to a good record this year.
With a much deeper forward core, Boudreau’s heavy forechecking system could be a problem for a lot of teams. Bruce, there it is!