The Vancouver Canucks started 2023 in turmoil and are ending it in the top five of the NHL standings. A new year means new beginnings and resolutions being made. As the Earth completes its rotation around the sun, the Canucks know they can be even better in 2024. Here are some Canucks storylines heading into 2024. It could be a big year for them.
But in case you forget, let’s quickly recap Vancouver’s 2023.
A Look Back at 2023
It started with the Canucks losing a lot of games. They were 16-17-3 on January 1 and 25th in the NHL. They looked like they would finish quite low and get a decent chance to draft Connor Bedard.
But on January 22, the Canucks fired head coach Bruce Boudreau (after he knew he would get the boot for weeks) and hired Rick Tocchet. Tocchet and his emphasis on structure, habits and standard and forechecking have worked for the Canucks so far. They have gone 43-22-7 since he took over.
It was a year of change. Captain Bo Horvat was traded to the New York Islanders on January 30 for Anthony Beauvillier, (now with the Chicago Blackhawks) Aatu Raty and a 2023 first-round pick. But a few days before the deadline, that pick was traded (along with a 2023 second-round pick) to the Detroit Red Wings for Filip Hronek.
That trade was heavily criticized by Canucks fans and media at the time. It was understandable because the Canucks were not in a position to be trading high draft picks. But despite that, Hronek has been a solid acquisition as he and Quinn Hughes formed a solid pairing.
General manager Patrik Allvin bought out Oliver Ekman-Larsson in the summer and that was one of the biggest buyouts in NHL history. Allvin set out to improve the defence and penalty kill by signing Carson Soucy, Ian Cole, Pius Suter and Teddy Blueger as well as trading for Sam Lafferty before the season started and Nikita Zadorov in November. He also traded Tanner Pearson and a 2025third round pick for Casey DeSmith who has proven to be a solid backup to Thatcher Demko.
The Canucks then flew out of the gate in the 2023-24 season and currently have a 23-10-3 record. Oh yeah, they also brought back the flying skate jersey as their third jersey. 2023 was quite the year for the Canucks. Cue We Didn’t Start The Fire.
Canucks storylines heading into 2024: How good can this team be and how far can they go?
At the time of this writing, the Canucks have a 99.8% chance of making the playoffs according to SportsClubStats. Those odds seem pretty good.
Barring a monumental collapse, there is no doubt that there will be playoff hockey at Rogers Arena for the first time since 2015. As good as the Canucks have been, it hasn’t been all perfect. The 4-1 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers last Wednesday is a prime example.
The Canucks penalty kill is miles better than last season but it sits 24th in the NHL at 77.5%. The power play sits ninth in the league at 23.6%. However, since December 1, the power play has been clicking at just 12.5% and is 29th in the NHL in that time span. The power play hasn’t looked as deadly in December and has looked way too predictable.
Elias Pettersson, Brock Boeser and JT Miller are big reasons why the Canucks are so high in the NHL standings. But they along with the rest of the top six have gone quiet in recent games while the line of Dakota Joshua, Conor Garland and Teddy Bluegar have looked unstoppable. While depth scoring is nice to have the Canucks need their top six to lead the way offensively.
It’s clear the Canucks still have their issues. The season is not even halfway over yet. According to Tankathon, Vancouver’s remaining strength of schedule is 13th. So just about in the middle.
The Vegas Golden Knights and Los Angeles Kings are battling it out with the Canucks for the top spot in the Pacific Division. They will face the Kings four times in the next few months and they will be after February 28. The Canucks will also face the Golden Knights three more times, once in March and twice in April. They lost the first meeting 4-1 on November 30 at Rogers Arena.
They are going to need to figure out how to put their best game together for the next few months, especially against teams closer to them in the standings.
Canucks storylines heading into 2024: What will the Canucks do at the trade deadline?
For the past few years, the talk around the Canucks is players they should unload for picks and prospects. But with the Canucks in a playoff position currently, it would make sense for them to add a piece or two before the trade deadline on March 8.
They already addressed the need for the blue line by trading for Zadorov. However, he is a left-shot defenceman and it wouldn’t hurt to add a right-shot defenceman. But with Zadorov now in the fold, and Soucy returning to the lineup soon, the defence already has quite a bit of depth. Plus, right-handed defencemen are hard to come by on the trade market.
A top-six winger would be ideal, especially one that can score goals. Ideally, the Canucks would have that winger play on Pettersson’s line so he can feast on his passing and playmaking.
Another option is a top-six centre particularly one that is good in his zone. This is not a dig against Miller and his defensive play. He’s been much better defensively since Tocchet took over but he is clearly not a shutdown player. Among all forwards playing at least 100 minutes this season at 5 on 5, Miller has given up 3.76 on-ice high-danger shot attempts per 60 minutes. That is the most among forwards at 5 on 5.
Miller would work best in a primarily offensive role. If the Canucks were to acquire that second-line centre that is good defensively, Miller could be moved to the wing and would be allowed to cook more offensively.
Of course, a defensively sound second-line centre or scoring top-six forward isn’t cheap to acquire. Do not be surprised if the Canucks move their first-round pick at the deadline. Who should the Canucks target? That’s another article for another day.
The Andrei Kuzmenko Situation
Andrei Kuzmenko finishes the calendar year with 61 points and that is fifth on the Canucks.
At the beginning of 2023, Kuzmenko was a bright spot in a miserable season. He simply knew how to find the back of the net with ease. On January 26, Allvin rewarded Kuzmenko with a two-year contract with a 5.5 million dollar AAV per season.
Tocchet is known for being a coach that demands the best out of his players and he has been very hard on Kuzmenko. The Russian winger has been a healthy scratch four times this season. Tocchet has spoken about Kuzmenko needing to forecheck more and is tired of answering questions about him.
It will be interesting to see what happens with Kuzmenko in 2024 and if he can recapture his form from his rookie season.
You might be wondering if trading him would benefit him and the Canucks. Right now, probably not.At the deadline or offseason? Maybe. But it will be tough due to his cap hit and 12-team no-trade list.
Kuzmenko will be watched heavily under the microscope in 2024. Can he get on Tocchet’s good side and work his way back up to the top six? Or will the healthy scratches continue?
Elias Pettersson, Filip Hronek and the 2024 offseason
Whatever happens for the rest of the season, the summer of 2024 will be Allvin’s biggest offseason since becoming the Canucks GM.
The biggest reason is because Elias Pettersson is a Restricted Free Agent. The franchise’s cornerstone is obviously going to want a huge raise. Out of all the Canucks storylines heading into 2024, Pettersson and his contract is the biggest.
In fact, the Canucks hope to get Pettersson’s contract done before the offseason. Darren Dreger of TSN hinted talks could heat up in the early months of 2024.
Pettersson has proven to be one of the best players in the league and a contact over at least ten million a season is something that could be in the cards.
Aside from Pettersson, Hronek also needs a new deal as he is also a pending RFA.
With the way Hronek has performed, it would not be surprising if he is asking for at least seven or eight million a season.
It will be interesting to see what Allvin and management do to find a way to get both Pettersson and Hronek new contracts.
2024 looks to be a big year for the Canucks both on and off the ice.
Main Photo: Bob Frid-USA TODAY Sports
