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Since the first day of free company on July 1, the Vancouver Canucks have been comparatively quiet. They have taken care of some in-house enterprise re-signing Nils Hoglander and Akito Hirose, however apart from that, they’ve stayed out of the highlight in relation to information.
As of Aug. 4, the Canucks are nonetheless $4,267,917 over the cap, however that doesn’t embrace possible long-term harm reserve inclusions Tanner Pearson ($3.25 million) and Tucker Poolman ($2.5 million). With these two added, they’ll have $1,482,083 in cap house. So, technically, they don’t have to make any strikes earlier than the begin of the season to stay cap compliant. However, if Pearson is on the highway to restoration, as Patrik Allvin stated at the starting of July, issues will get dicey in that division.
Pearson is only one of many wild playing cards going into the 2023-24 season that would assist the Canucks’ pursuit of their first actual playoff berth since Bo Horvat’s rookie marketing campaign in 2014-15. Let’s check out a couple of extra.
Akito Hirose
Along with Jake Livingston, Hirose was one in all the extra fashionable NCAA free brokers final season. The Canucks have been in on Livingston too however have been unable to persuade the Creston, BC native to affix the Canucks. They did sign Hirose though, and a few would argue they obtained the higher of the two defencemen. Time will inform on that, however in the small pattern measurement that was 5 video games for Livingston and 7 video games for Hirose, the latter appeared far more snug in the NHL than the former.
The former Salmon Arm Silverback was stable in his first NHL recreation towards the Los Angeles Kings on April 2 and solely obtained higher as time went on. He solely performed 14:01 in his debut however progressively obtained extra ice time from head coach Rick Tocchet in his subsequent six video games. His peak efficiency got here on April 6 towards the Chicago Blackhawks the place he performed 20:30 and recorded his first multipoint recreation in the NHL. All in all, he completed with three assists, one in all them being a phenomenal go to Andrei Kuzmenko towards the Anaheim Ducks that showcased his hockey IQ and imaginative and prescient.
Going into 2023-24, Hirose will battle for the remaining two spots on the blue line, both alongside Tyler Myers or as the seventh defenceman. With the amount of poise and confidence he confirmed in the NHL final season, I wouldn’t be stunned to see him turn out to be a daily this season. The Canucks’ protection will already be stronger with the additions of Carson Soucy, Ian Cole, and a wholesome Filip Hronek, however Hirose may put it over the high. If he can present the identical Chris Tanev-esque recreation he displayed in the small seven-game pattern measurement for a whole marketing campaign, the defence corps may really be a energy as an alternative of a weak spot.
Nils Hoglander
Hoglander burst onto the NHL scene throughout the COVID-19-shortened 2020-21 season. After a stable 14 factors in 23 video games with Rogle BK of the Swedish Hockey League (SHL), he surprised everyone in training camp and earned a spot on the second line with Bo Horvat on opening evening. His velocity, creativity, and most of all, work ethic and tenacity made him a favourite of then-head coach Travis Green as he performed him a mean of 15:27 an evening with 1:25 on the energy play.
Hoglander ended up enjoying most of the season on the captain’s hip alongside Pearson and completed with 13 objectives and 27 factors in 56 video games. He even received some Calder Trophy love (one third-place; 4 fourth-place; seven fifth-place) and completed eighth general in the voting. Needless to say, the pleasure was at a fever pitch for what he may do in his sophomore season.
Related: Canucks Top-15 Prospects Heading Into the 2023-24 Season
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Unfortunately, after a training change that noticed Green be replaced with Bruce Boudreau in December 2021, his recreation took a flip for the worse as Boudreau criticized his defensive recreation and minimize his ice time. He did end with a stable 10 objectives and 18 factors however noticed his ice time drop to a mean of 12:10 and his manufacturing to solely 5 objectives and eight factors in 35 video games after beginning the season with 5 objectives and 10 factors in 25 video games. His plus/minus additionally took a dive from a plus-2 to a minus-8.
“He’s got some scoring potential, but he needs to learn how to play the game,” Boudreau said. “He’s still a young kid, quite frankly, and I don’t know, someday he might score 40 goals, but if you’re going to hover around the 20-goal mark, you better learn to play both ends of the ice.”
After being a favourite of Green’s, Hoglander ended up in the canine home when it got here to Boudreau. And it didn’t cease in 2022-23 both as he was a controversial healthy scratch early in the season and was ultimately dispatched to the American Hockey League (AHL) after a stable stretch the place he scored two objectives and 6 factors in 10 video games. He by no means noticed the NHL after that and spent the remainder of the season in Abbotsford.
On the vivid aspect, Hoglander grew to become one in all head coach Jeremy Colliton’s greatest gamers and completed his first stint in the AHL with 14 objectives and 32 factors in 45 video games and three objectives and 6 factors in the playoffs. The hope now could be that he has turn out to be a greater two-way model of the participant followers noticed in 2020-21 when he was garnering headlines as one in all the NHL’s younger weapons. This season, he might be competing with a glut of wingers for a spot in the top-nine, presumably alongside Teddy Blueger and Conor Garland on the third line. He must persuade one other new coach in Tocchet that he has the defensive chops to play a daily shift in the NHL, but when all goes nicely, he may very well be one in all the Canucks’ breakout stars at the finish of the season.
Ilya Mikheyev
Throughout his profession with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Ilya Mikheyev showcased elite velocity and a capability to play on the penalty kill. He was even a menace to attain shorthanded, notching 4 shorthanded objectives in 2021-22. After a career-high 21 objectives and 32 factors in 53 video games, he took his providers to the Canucks signing a four-year, $19 million contract on the first day of free company in 2022.
Mikheyev was on tempo to shatter these numbers in his first go-around in Vancouver, however sadly, an harm derailed that pursuit as he was shut down in December for season-ending ACL surgical procedure. Surprisingly, he was coping with the ailment since coaching camp however nonetheless put up a stable 13 objectives and 28 factors in 46 video games. If that’s what he may do underneath 100%, then what does he have in retailer for 2023-24?
Numerous line projections are inserting Mikheyev on the high unit with uber producers Elias Pettersson (39 objectives, 102 factors) and Andrei Kuzmenko (39 objectives, 74 factors) for the 2023-24 season. His agent, Dan Milstein, stated on July 28 that his consumer had began skating and that he could be prepared for coaching camp, which is thrilling contemplating that trio was one in all the Canucks’ greatest at the starting of final season. In 197:30 of ice time together, they put up 17 objectives and generated 47 high-danger probabilities and 99 general scoring probabilities. Over a full marketing campaign, they may have arguably been one in all the Canucks’ all-time high strains. So, it kinda goes with out saying that Mikheyev is a large wild card going into this season.
Canucks Have Other Wild Cards in 2023-24
These are simply three of the Canucks’ wild playing cards heading into 2023-24. I already talked about Pearson, who’s fortunately on the mend after a hand harm threatened to finish his profession and alter his life-style. If he can return to kind, he may very well be a large difference-maker in the bottom-six or at the very least carry again an asset at the commerce deadline. Apart from him, there may be the wild card of one other new coach in Tocchet (hopefully) driving out a whole season and main the Canucks to a playoff berth.
Related: Canucks’ GM Allvin Adding Key Young Players
Finally, there’s the potential of Vasily Podkolzin bouncing again after a lackluster 2022-23 the place he cut up time between Vancouver and Abbotsford and solely recorded 4 objectives and 7 factors after 14 objectives and 26 factors in his rookie season. Tocchet wants him to be more “reckless” this season and present extra indicators of the participant that scouts cherished throughout his draft yr in 2019. If he can try this, together with Hoglander taking a step ahead, the Canucks may have a deadly bottom-six to fall again on when their top-six isn’t scoring. And as we noticed with the Vegas Golden Knights and Seattle Kraken in the playoffs final yr, that’s precisely what brings groups to the large stage fairly than sitting on the sidelines ready for the draft lottery.
All in all, it’s going to be an fascinating season to comply with for Canucks followers. It all will get began with their first preseason recreation towards Jonathan Huberdeau and the Calgary Flames on Sept. 24 earlier than the common season kicks off on Oct. 11 versus Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers.
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