Until now, choosing the Vancouver Canucks best player by number has been pretty easy. High numbers were reserved for prospects getting tryouts and maybe players late to camp. Some managers hated their players standing out and forced them to stick to anything below 30.
Canucks Best by Number: 44-35
Higher numbers started appearing on regulars just over the past 30 years. There were a few exceptions of course *ahem* Wayne Gretzky *ahem* but they usually had the talent to match their will.
44 – Todd Bertuzzi
The earliest Canucks player to have a number above 35 and to have played more than half the games in a season was not Todd Bertuzzi. It was Rob Murphy, but I don’t think he’ll mind not being chosen here. Murphy skated in 42 games in 1990-91 wearing number 44, but his impact was limited.
Not so Todd Bertuzzi. Bertuzzi came to Vancouver with a ton of pressure, being the primary return for beloved captain Trevor Linden. He and Bryan McCabe transformed the Canucks, though the latter did it by getting traded.
Bertuzzi joined Vancouver as a young, fourth-line winger who was physically imposing and could score some goals. He’s also an excellent example of how gaining mass doesn’t necessarily improve hockey players. When he focussed on skating, he moved to the front line and history.
We obviously have to mention the disastrous ending of his Canucks career in the Steve Moore attack. But until then, Bertuzzi was a terrifying presence with fists or stick, scoring 188 goals and 449 points in 518 games.
43 – Quinn Hughes
So, you remember how we mentioned the picks until now have been pretty easy? We stand corrected. The best player to wear 43 has been Quinn Hughes since he played five games in 2018-19. He’s not only Vancouver’s only Norris Trophy winner but their only nominee.
In six seasons – or five seasons and five games – Hughes has 333 points in 365 games. He is 76 points back of Canucks all-time leader Alexander Edler, who played 925 games with Vancouver. His past three seasons have been the highest a Canucks defenseman has scored.
It was briefly worn by Aatu Räty when Hughes was out of the lineup, but… no. Just no.
42 – Kyle Wellwood
There is a good argument to be made for Josef Beránek here. While each player was only in the city for a limited time, Beránek had a higher points per game. Wellwood was always just a little frustrating to watch, gaining a reputation for so-called “soft skill”.
But he wasn’t unskilled, doing pretty dang good for a player drafted 134th overall. His 32 goals and 52 points in 149 Canucks games is solid for a bottom-six guy. Even if 13 of those goals were on the power play.
He wasn’t a bump-and-grind guy and he wasn’t quite skilled enough for top-line minutes. He was also surprisingly productive in the playoffs, scoring three goals in 14 points in 22 for Vancouver.
And in one of those playoff runs he achieved cult status by finally looking like a hockey player.
41 – Andrew Alberts
There is no question that Jaroslav Halák is a more talented player than Andrew Alberts. But was he the Canucks best Number 41? Well, no. Halák played all of 17 games for Vancouver, and Alberts 134. Almost the same number of points, though.
Alberts is a throwback style of defender in one sense: his job was to protect his goaltender. Or at least his goaltender’s sightlines. The 6’5″ Alberts contributed four goals and 13 points, but that wasn’t really a focus for him. Still, he did well enough to take this number.
40 – Elias Pettersson
Another easy choice here. Elias Pettersson is one of the players sparking the Canucks revival, and for good reason. The Calder Trophy winner has 170 goals and 412 points in 407 NHL games so far. But he did have a rough playoff run, with just one goal and six points in 13 games.
While Vancouver has had no one to compare to Quinn Hughes, there are a few forwards who can match Pettersson. Six have scored more points in a season than Pettersson. Heck, one – J.T. Miller – is on the team right now! That means he’s bad, right?
The “worst” of his six seasons in Vancouver was when he scored 10 goals and 21 points in 26 games. In his best, he had 39 and 102 in 80. If you’re actually concerned about him, go sit in the corner and think about what brought you to this point.
39 – Dan Cloutier
We’ve had two goaltenders so far in our countdown, but this is our first to play more than a handful of games. Dan Cloutier played 208 regular season games in Vancouver, getting 109 wins in the process. He was also the Canucks record holder for shutouts in a season until Roberto Luongo.
He was a hot-tempered goalie, which came back to bite him as often as not. When he was paired with Alex Auld, it was a study in contrasts. It’s hard to picture the skaters not being affected by whether they had Fire or Ice behind them.
Cloutier will be long remembered – unfairly – for one misplay on a long shot in the playoffs. Many older Canucks fans will play What If…? with that moment, but forget the Red Wings had a double handful of Hall of Fame players. One stop probably wasn’t changing destiny, folks.
38 – Pavol Demitra
Vancouver isn’t well-known as a twilight destination for old players. But Pavol Demitra decided to finish his NHL career there before moving to the still-new Kontinental Hockey League. Tragically, he was one of the people who died in the Lokomotiv crash in 2011.
His second season with Vancouver was a rough one as he recovered from a shoulder injury. Still, his first was everything the team could ask for, and his totals with the Canucks were 23 goals and 69 points in 97 games.
Add in his nine points in 17 playoff games and this is a What If…? fans can justify wondering about.
37 – Jarkko Ruutu
The third piece to come to Vancouver in the Trevor Linden trade was a third-round pick in 1998. Jarkko Ruutu was 23 years old when he was drafted – it was a different time – and moved quickly to the NHL. He was everything you expect from a 6’1″ 205lb Finn: annoying AF.
Ruutu may not have been much for points, with 23 goals and 51 points in 267 Canucks games. But he was a world-class agitator, racking up 453 penalty minutes with Vancouver. You can’t say he didn’t know his game, playing on the fourth line for his entire 11-season NHL career.*
36 – Jannik Hansen
Okay, slight bias here. Going to admit it outright, Jannik Hansen was the one I watched for most of a decade. He played like a bowling ball going after pins. He wasn’t the biggest player out there, though you wouldn’t know it by who he went after.
And despite that attitude, he was a (mostly) clean player. His totals in Vancouver were 260 penalty minutes, 105 goals and 235 assists in 565 games. An “at all costs” player that can quickly become a fan favourite.
35 – There Is No 35!
Yep, trick entry! With the low 30s being the property of goaltenders, this batch is worth looking at all on its own. Which Canucks is best who wore number 35? Yes, there is a single standout right now – but it’s not as clear-cut as you might think.
A special 30-35 episode is coming later this week. See you then!
*Hat tip to fan favourite Rick Rypien here. Project 11 and Hockey Talks shine a light on a side of sports – and life – not often talked about.
Main Photo: Bob Frid-USA TODAY Sports
