Moving Van
Stopping the puck will be a huge task for Jaroslav Halak in Vancouver this season.
It's been a lot of ups and downs for the Vancouver Canuck faithful over the years, and the hope is this isn't a fresh set of downward spirals coming this season.
The Cancks were once a model of inability to capitalize on a plethora of telent. Under the inaugural reign of General manager Iain Murray, the Canucks built up a strong team year after year, only to have it washed away with post-season failures, often at the hands of the Minnesota Wild. After Murray's tenure ended, the Canucks went through both highs and lows, the lowest being a few seasons ago when they inished dead last in the WCHL by a country mile, barely eclipsing 30 points.
In a geographic shuffle however, the Canucks were given a boost in fortunes, seeing the Atlanta Thrashers squad move to Vancouver, with the old Vancouver Canucks shuffling off to Winnipeg to become the Jets.
The Canucks effectively went from the league's worst team to a top 10 squad with the signing of a few league documents. Once again though, the Canucks were unable to make much happen with that talent, and now, after yet another General Manager change, the Canucks are hoping they'll find their way out of the desert quicker than Moses did.
Indeed, Vancouver is coming off a season in which they missed the playoffs by eight points, going 34-39-9, and did virtually nothing in the off-season. Now they find themselves at a significant crossroads, trying to get the most out of aging team while wondering if some of that team, including future Hall of Fame defenseman Chris Pronger, will be staying with the club long-term.
If Chris Pronger can be his all-star self, the Canucks could make a big move in the Western Conference.
The man tasked with guiding the ship is newly minted General Manager Dylan Schwark. He won't have an easy task in front of him, with a few key players set to be free agents after the season and a few others tied into no movement contracts. Several bloated contracts meanwhile have the Canucks with just over $1 million in wiggle room under the salary cap.
"We have the team in place now to make the playoffs, I know that," said Sedin sister Henrik. "We have a great top line, a great second line cetre in John Tavares, a very experienced defense, and a legit number one netminder in Jaroslav Halak. We have the pieces, but we could use to make some adjustments."
Those adjustments will need to come more significantly on defense. Oddly, with a blueline that features Chris Pronger, Alexander Edler, Ed Jovanovski and Brent Burns, the Canucks surrendered a whopping 276 goals last year, fourth most in the Western Conference. That number could be much better.
Opponents don't like playing aganst Alexander Edler. The hard-hitting defenseman is part of a very under-performing Canucks blueline.
Improving the defensive posture of the forward ranks would help, with very few players looking like Selke Trophy candidates, but the addition of Jamie Langenbrunner should help in that regard. Another positive would be the addition of a legitimate backup netminder. Andy Chiodo hardly proved very effective last season, and wasn't able to give Halak much support or time off.
While cap space is an issue, expect to see defenseman John Carlson get plenty of ice time for the Canucks this year as well. The young blueline stud figures to give the Canucks a boost now, and also down the road as the 20-year-old is only getting started and certainly would help Vancouver improve their defense.
There is plenty of reason to be positive in Vancouver, but there's no guarantee that this tea won't hit the skids again. The one who will decide whether that happens or not is Schwark.
For all the talk about improvement, the Canucks will only go as far as the Sedin twins can carry them.
Stopping the puck will be a huge task for Jaroslav Halak in Vancouver this season.
It's been a lot of ups and downs for the Vancouver Canuck faithful over the years, and the hope is this isn't a fresh set of downward spirals coming this season.
The Cancks were once a model of inability to capitalize on a plethora of telent. Under the inaugural reign of General manager Iain Murray, the Canucks built up a strong team year after year, only to have it washed away with post-season failures, often at the hands of the Minnesota Wild. After Murray's tenure ended, the Canucks went through both highs and lows, the lowest being a few seasons ago when they inished dead last in the WCHL by a country mile, barely eclipsing 30 points.
In a geographic shuffle however, the Canucks were given a boost in fortunes, seeing the Atlanta Thrashers squad move to Vancouver, with the old Vancouver Canucks shuffling off to Winnipeg to become the Jets.
The Canucks effectively went from the league's worst team to a top 10 squad with the signing of a few league documents. Once again though, the Canucks were unable to make much happen with that talent, and now, after yet another General Manager change, the Canucks are hoping they'll find their way out of the desert quicker than Moses did.
Indeed, Vancouver is coming off a season in which they missed the playoffs by eight points, going 34-39-9, and did virtually nothing in the off-season. Now they find themselves at a significant crossroads, trying to get the most out of aging team while wondering if some of that team, including future Hall of Fame defenseman Chris Pronger, will be staying with the club long-term.
If Chris Pronger can be his all-star self, the Canucks could make a big move in the Western Conference.
The man tasked with guiding the ship is newly minted General Manager Dylan Schwark. He won't have an easy task in front of him, with a few key players set to be free agents after the season and a few others tied into no movement contracts. Several bloated contracts meanwhile have the Canucks with just over $1 million in wiggle room under the salary cap.
"We have the team in place now to make the playoffs, I know that," said Sedin sister Henrik. "We have a great top line, a great second line cetre in John Tavares, a very experienced defense, and a legit number one netminder in Jaroslav Halak. We have the pieces, but we could use to make some adjustments."
Those adjustments will need to come more significantly on defense. Oddly, with a blueline that features Chris Pronger, Alexander Edler, Ed Jovanovski and Brent Burns, the Canucks surrendered a whopping 276 goals last year, fourth most in the Western Conference. That number could be much better.
Opponents don't like playing aganst Alexander Edler. The hard-hitting defenseman is part of a very under-performing Canucks blueline.
Improving the defensive posture of the forward ranks would help, with very few players looking like Selke Trophy candidates, but the addition of Jamie Langenbrunner should help in that regard. Another positive would be the addition of a legitimate backup netminder. Andy Chiodo hardly proved very effective last season, and wasn't able to give Halak much support or time off.
While cap space is an issue, expect to see defenseman John Carlson get plenty of ice time for the Canucks this year as well. The young blueline stud figures to give the Canucks a boost now, and also down the road as the 20-year-old is only getting started and certainly would help Vancouver improve their defense.
There is plenty of reason to be positive in Vancouver, but there's no guarantee that this tea won't hit the skids again. The one who will decide whether that happens or not is Schwark.
For all the talk about improvement, the Canucks will only go as far as the Sedin twins can carry them.
