3 significant X-Factors that will ultimately make or break the rest of the Canucks season
Turbulence is inevitable across an 82-game season, and the Canucks have finally started experiencing it recently after dropping three straight.
The Vancouver Canucks have been the Western Conference’s most dominant team for much of the 2023-24 season before a three-game losing streak gave them a reality check. The message was simple: This group is nowhere near a flawless bunch, and they must still improve several areas of their game if they want to remain among the NHL’s elite teams this season.
Now, one three-game skid shouldn’t be much to worry about since Vancouver had yet to lose three in a row this season. Ditto for the fact they are just 4-4-1 in February, as through a regular season that stretches from mid-October to mid-April, even the best teams are bound to have a bad month or at least a harsh couple of weeks.
So how can the Canucks improve and learn from what has been a rather rough ride since the All-Star Break? Keep reading for three X-Factors that will either keep their season running strong or cause them to falter down the stretch.
The Canucks must take action at or before the trade deadline
While it’s true that, despite the recent skid, the Canucks remain one of the best teams in hockey, it’s also clear that they aren’t without their flaws. Despite ranking 10th in the NHL with 159 goals allowed, defense hasn’t been Vancouver’s strong suit and it’s starting to show.
Trading for someone like Chris Tanev, another defenseman who matches his style, or even a defensive-minded forward, would help. Bringing Elias Lindholm to British Columbia was a good start to add another layer of offense, but that extra and much-needed layer of defense is still missing, so the Canucks cannot be finished making roster transactions just yet.
That said, Lindholm is a physical player who can be disruptive in the defensive zone either by finishing checks or poking away pucks. And adding him recently shows us that Vancouver’s front office is aware of the issue, but they still need to do more.
Vancouver’s penalty kill needs to find a way to step up
Through 58 games, Vancouver has allowed 39 power play goals out of 183 penalty kill opportunities, good for just a 78.69 success rate. This is slightly below the NHL average, and as of February 21st, their PK unit ranks 21st in the NHL.
For context, only two teams currently slated to make the NHL Playoffs are ranked lower than Vancouver: the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Winnipeg Jets. Toronto is currently hovering between a top-three and wild card spot, leaving the Jets as the only other pure top-three team in the league ranked in the 20s. Two contenders who could find themselves landing a spot in the wild card are also ranked 20th or worse - the New Jersey Devils (20th) and the Nashville Predators (26th).
A playoff-caliber team like the Canucks can’t allow this to go on for much longer, and they need to find a way to fix the penalty kill before it becomes an issue down the stretch. It’s clear that there is a strong correlation between making the playoffs and possessing a strong penalty kill, and that will become even more important when the playoff race reaches its most intense stages.
Time for the Canucks to lean heavily on Thatcher Demko
In 2021-22, Thatcher Demko started in 61 contests and played in 64. While the team wasn’t spectacular, it was Demko’s best year to date. He ended the season with 33 wins, a 0.915 save percentage, a 2.72 GAA, a shutout, a solid 0.574 quality starts percentage, and just seven really bad starts.
Most of the numbers are even better this season, but the Canucks haven’t leaned on Demko quite enough, with Casey DeSmith securing 16 starts to date. But the results between Demko and DeSmith couldn’t be more different, with the former attaining 30 wins, a 0.918 save percentage, a 2.44 GAA, and an eye-popping five shutouts to go with a 0.667 quality starts percentage, and seven really bad starts.
Compared to Demko’s 2021-22 numbers, only his RBS is about to be worse. As for DeSmith, he has just seven wins, an 0.894 save percentage, a 3.06 GAA, just one shutout, and five really bad starts. Only his 0.563 quality starts percentage fares as a decent number, but given his RBS, it’s clear that DeSmith is struggling through nearly as many bad games as good ones.
With these numbers in mind, it shouldn’t be tough for Vancouver to roll with Demko on most nights, preferably 80 percent of the remaining games, if not more. Currently, he’s started just 70 percent of them, so four in every five would do well for Vancouver.
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(Statistics provided by Hockey-Reference as of February 21st)