The Vancouver Canucks and their fans could not have asked for a better start to the young 2014-15 season, as everything the team had hoped for during the summer seems to have come to fruition.
Free-agent signing Radim Vrbata, brought in specifically for the purpose of re-invigorating the Sedins, has done exactly that. The new-look top line is simply one of the best in hockey at the moment. Through three games, Henrik Sedin has potted 2 goals and 4 assists, brother Daniel Sedin leads the team with 5 assists (and 1 goal), while triggerman Vrbata leads the team in goals with 3 (and has added 2 assists of his own).
For those keeping track, that’s 17 points from the Canucks top line through three games.
Fellow newcomer Ryan Miller has also been as good as advertised thus far. He picked up his first shutout in Canucks colors last night against the Oilers, stopping all 28 shots he faced, and has been generally solid so far this season with three wins, a 1.95 gaa and a .927 save %.
Then of course there’s new head coach Willie Desjardins, who has also made an impact already. His new power play deployment (in part devised by assistant coach Perry Pearn) featuring rookie Linden Vey patrolling the high slot, has left the Sedins with much more room to operate, and the results have been impressive (5 goals on 19 opportunities, for a 26.3% efficiency).
More than just his power play tinkering though, is the breath of fresh air that Desjardins has brought to the Canucks dressing room. Where his predecessor John Tortorella was a task-master, Desjardins styles himself more as a teacher, a fact that’s been appreciated so far by the players.
Additionally, Desjardins is a firm believer in rolling four lines, a stark contrast to Tortorella, who would run his top players into the ground and rarely gave the fourth line a sniff of a shift after the end of the second period. It all adds up to a team that isn’t afraid to learn from their mistakes and players who know their individual roles, which helps gives them the confidence they need to be their best.
However, all this positivity comes with a couple of caveats, and they are a sign that this hot start by the Canucks may be setting them up for a fall.
First, the competition has to be considered. This is no slight against the Calgary Flames or the Edmonton Oilers (who the Canucks have already beaten twice and who have been abjectly awful defensively this season to the tune of 24 goals against in only 5 games), but the two can hardly be considered heavy competition. Both teams have been traditionally eviscerated by the Sedins in the past, and it’s no surprise to see that trend continue.
For as good as the Canucks have been over the first three games of the season, the next three against Tampa Bay, Dallas, and St. Louis will be much more telling. Three games is too small a sample size to get excited about, and that those three games were against bottom-feeders should make anyone even warier.
Another concern is whether the Sedins and Vrbata can keep up this offensive pace. Even when considering that all three are on track for around 150 points this season (with 82 goals from Vrbata!), there are less outlandish indications that they cannot. All three have highly inflated shooting percentages (Henrik’s 28.6% is more than double his career average) that will eventually regress, though it’s hard to argue that they haven’t had three or four grade-A scoring opportunities each game (especially from Vrbata, who’s right-hand shot on the left side of the crease is tailor-made for open net goals).
Still, to expect this output over a full 82-game season, especially on the dog days of the season when injuries, back-to-backs, inevitable slumps, and long road trips take their mitigating toll, isn’t very prudent.
Then you have to consider what all the success by the Sedin line is masking: a lack of secondary scoring. While expected offensive players such as Vey, Alex Burrows, Nick Bonino, and Zack Kassian have each potted a goal this season, they are the only players outside of the top line to do so.
To make matters worse, the goals by Vey and Burrows came on the power play, meaning the Canucks have only two goals at five-on-five coming from their bottom nine forwards (and none from their defense in any situation) through three games. For a team hoping to use the philosophy of depth and rolling four lines to their advantage, this lack of secondary scoring predicted prior to the season has already shown itself to be a concern.
Finally there is a worry that is not unique to the Canucks and is in fact inherent to any NHL team, the effect of injuries.
In Vancouver’s case, the Canucks lost rookie Bo Horvat late in the pre-season due to a shoulder injury and have been anxiously awaiting his debut with the club, not only because of the impact a high-profile prospect can make on the lineup (not to mention the fanbase), but for his face-off skills. Vancouver currently ranks 26th in the NHL in the dot (46.5%), where Henrik Sedin and Brad Richardson are the only two Canucks above 50%.
This of course has a trickle down effect through the entire lineup. Contrary to all logic, Henrik has been starting the majority of his shifts in the defensive zone because there are few other centers that can be trusted to win those crucial draws (where losing a face-off in your own zone is essentially giving the other team a brief 5-1o second advantage akin to a power play).
This trend was reversed somewhat last night, when Richardson was counted more on the defensive zone draws, finally allowing Henrik to play near the opponent’s net where he belongs. However the overall problem still exists, as evidenced by Vey, the team’s third line center, taking just two faceoffs against the Oilers and losing both of them.
If Horvat were inserted into the lineup, his prowess in the circle would allow the Sedin line more opportunities to start shifts in the offensive zone as well as providing coach Desjardins with more face-off options overall.
It’s not as though the Sedins have been having trouble moving the puck up ice, but it would certainly save an older line from doing too much of the heavy lifting and allowing them to focus more strictly on offense. Having three quality centers taking draws allows each line to play in their appropriate roles. It seems as though Horvat will be ready to play soon, and it’ll be interesting to see just how big his insertion will be to the rest of the line-up.
The blueline has also been hit by injuries, as steady sophomore Ryan Stanton left the game against Edmonton last night and did not return, while shut-down defender Dan Hamhuis likewise left the game after a bloody high-sick, though returned later wearing a full cage.
The Canucks should consider themselves lucky, they don’t have nearly the injury troubles that other teams around the NHL are currently dealing with, but it’s a harsh reminder that a few key injuries here or there could have the Canucks scrambling for replacements or having to rely on players that aren’t prepared for larger roles.
The very fact that the Canucks have been so healthy so far is a cause for concern, because injuries are inevitable and how a team is able to deal with them is not only indicative to an organization’s overall strength and depth, but also, ultimately, its success.
So, for all the joy that Vancouver fans have been feeling by starting the season 3-0 (and being one of just two undefeated teams so far in this young season) for the first time since 1999, there are issues that need to be addressed.
The Sedins have to prove that their early offensive explosion is truly a turn-around in their play from last season and not merely feasting on lesser competition. The secondary offense has to prove it’s just been a few down games for them as a group and not a fundamental flaw. The roster has to prove that it has what it takes to persevere through injuries and that there is quality depth. The team has to prove that all these issues don’t become systemic, or this red-hot start may be setting the Canucks up for a fall sometime soon.
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