Travis Green’s time with the Vancouver Canucks unceremoniously came to an end – alongside GM Jim Benning – on Dec. 5, 2021. After a year and a half out of hockey, the New Jersey Devils tapped Green to replace departed associate coach Andrew Brunette late in June.
The Devils, unlike the Canucks, are a perfect 6-0 in the preseason as they approach their final exhibition game, and Green’s new-look power play has had a lot to do with that. New Jersey lit up the New York Rangers 5-2 on Wednesday night, with Jesper Bratt, Dawson Mercer, and Jack Hughes all tallying with the man advantage. Ondrej Palat also had three power play assists, and in just that game alone, the Devils converted three times in five attempts.
In total, the former Canucks head coach has the Devils’ power play singing to a tune of 44 percent (8-18), and a lot of it is due to Green’s move to split the team’s personnel. Most notably, Hughes and Bratt were moved to the second unit, while the first unit is composed of Mercer, Nico Hischier, Timo Meier, Dougie Hamilton, and Alexander Holtz.
When the Canucks last made the playoffs in the 2019-20 season, Green’s power play scored at a 24 percent clip – four percent above the league average of 20.03. The Devils’ power play was 13th in the league last season at 21.9 percent, and yet they might even improve on that with the guidance of their new coach.
Did Vancouver have the personnel New Jersey has when Green was coach? No. And, they still don’t. Still, it’s been interesting to see the Canucks cycle through coaches the way they have over the last few seasons with little or no change or end result.
Either way, the Canucks are rapidly approaching the official start of the 2023-24 season, and Rick Tocchet’s first full season with the team is on the horizon. Hopefully Vancouver can emulate some of the special teams success New Jersey has had so far.