2) Power play continues to short circuit
We can appreciate that perception is often reality, with the Canucks' power play offering such evidence. On the one hand, their 20.0 percent efficiency and 16th-best ranking through eight games isn't that bad, when you consider they were at 22.7 percent effectiveness and ranked 11th for the 2023-24 campaign as a whole.
However, if you delve a little deeper, there is at least some cause for concern. Particularly when you get past the 2-for-4 productivity in the season opener at home to the Calgary Flames.
Giving due credit to Ben Kuzma of The Province, consider that in the seven games since then the Canucks have gone just 3-for-21 on the power play, managing only 27 shots along the way. This converts to a 14.3 percent efficiency which would rank a lowly 26th in the NHL. (Interestingly one place ahead of the usually dangerous Edmonton Oilers, who have just a 13.8 percent efficiency.)
This is quite simply not good enough, and an area in which the Canucks must improve if they are to be labelled as genuine contenders come playoff time. In this respect, consider that their power play was left wanting during last season's playoffs, with a 13.9 percent efficiency which ranked just 12th among the 16 competing teams.
Against the Hurricanes specifically, the Canucks went 0-for-3 with the man advantage and just couldn't get anything going. While we appreciate the visitors are one of the better penalty kill units in the NHL -- seventh at 86.7 percent efficiency as of Tuesday morning -- you have to take better advantage, particularly at home in a game where you're second-best at even-strength.
Tocchet provided his no-nonsense analysis of what went wrong on the night on the power play, and where the team needs to improve. He said:
""Yeah, we're gonna have to make some changes, not working hard enough. Very lackadaisical - that's a high pressure team. We had the odd time when we had a couple of looks. ... When (Quinn) Hughes threw at the net, we had Millsy almost scored in front. That's the key against this pressure (penalty kill), being able to make one or two plays and get it to the net. I thought a couple of guys were playing slow and you can't play slow against a high-pressure penalty kill.""