Vancouver Canucks GM Jim Benning has been backed into a corner. His team's poor goaltending has been exposed. Injuries to their core skill players is killing and abysmal goaltending is killing the Canucks.
The Canucks are 1-7-1 in their last nine games playing without star leading scorer and number one center Bo Horvat. Add in crippling injuries to top line winger Sven Baertschi and puck mover Chris Tanev and you have a quagmire in Couver.
The silver lining in the black cloud hanging over the Canucks is rookie winger Brock Boeser and his 20 goals.
On Hockey Night In Canada against the St. Louis Blues, Boeser became the first Canucks rookie since Daniel Sedin to score 20 goals. Boeser accomplished the 20-goal feat faster than any other rookie in Canucks history. Boeser has scored goals in seven of the last nine games, and 15 times in the last 19 games. Boeser has scored 14 goals at even strength. Boeser is the best Vancouver rookie since Pavel Bure, and could be the first Canuck since the iconic Bure in 1993 to win the Calder Trophy.
Against the powerful Blues, Boeser did all he could to turn the tide of a miserable losing streak, however, it wasn't good enough. The kid is good, but, he can't do it all by himself.
Boeser’s goals help the branding, both the Canucks’ and his, and sell hope on the West Coast. But they haven’t meant much lately in the standings.
Benning knows he has to improve his goaltending if his team is going to make the playoffs. His goalies are ranked 29th in the NHL with 119 goals allowed in 37 games (3.22 GPG).
Jacob Markstrom (9-12-0-4) is struggling mightily to make save to give his team a chance inside games. Markstrom has a .905 SV% and 2.77 GAA.
In his past six starts since the Horvat broken foot injury, Markstrom has been brutal, allowing 23 goals against. Markstrom's SV% the past five starts is .846, including .844 vs. San Jose, .737 vs. Calgary, and .792 vs. Winnipeg.
Anders Nilsson (6-5-0-1) with a twin .905 SV% and a bloated 3.39 GAA.
With 35 points in 37 games played, the Canuck now find themselves in 14th place in the Western Conference standings. The Canucks fimd themselves just five points out of eighth place, however, they would have to jump up and over Edmonton (36 points), Colorado (37 points), Calgary (39), Minnesota (39), Chicago (39), and Anaheim (40 points). Struggling San Jose has 42 points and are precariously hanging onto seventh seed.
When the NHL roster freeze thaws on December 28, Benning will have to upgrade his goaltending and his even strength scoring. The Canucks are ranked 27th in the West with just 57 even strength goals scored.
If he doesn't address his two areas of deficiency, his team will buckle to the pressure of playing without Horvat, Baertschi and Tanev, plus grossly under-performing goaltending. Bye bye playoffs.
Like many teams, the Canucks have been scouting the Buffalo Sabres this season.
Benning can turn the losing tide by making a trade for goalie Robin Lehner and power forward Evander Kane.
Robin Lehner has stopped 237 of 252 shots (.940) in his last seven games. In those games, he has also stopped 180 of 188 shots faced during 5-on-5 play (.957), which includes two goals allowed with an opponent’s extra attacker on the ice. Lehner is a restricted free agent.
Since December 3, 2016, Vancouver native Evander Kane has scored 43 goals and 33 assists (35 at even strength) in 105 games. Kane, 26, is a pending unrestricted free agent. Kane has scored 15 goals and 18 assists in 36 games played this season. Kane has 10 points (3G,7A) in his last 11 games this season.
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Zac Rinaldo is a predatory hockey player. He refuses to change his game. He lives for crossing the line. He injures opponents. He is a multi-time offender.
On Saturday night, Rinaldo senseless sucker punched Colorado Avs rookie D Sam Girard. Rightly so, Rinaldo was assessed a match penlaty and was tosssed from the game.
Yikes. After already taking out Nathan MacKinnon, Zac Rinaldo with a nasty punch on Samuel Girard pic.twitter.com/FsmZwWKajF
— Brady Trettenero (@BradyTrett) December 24, 2017
Good on Nathan MacKinnon for jumping Rinaldo after the attack on Girard, a 19 year old rookie. Rinaldo's rap sheet is littered cheap shots, sucker hits and attempts to injure his opponents.
The NHL will be coming down hard on Rinaldo. Don't be surprised when the NHL Players Safty Deprtment bans Rinaldo for 25 plus games for his senseless attack on Girard.
Arizona’s Zac Rinaldo has been offered an in-person hearing for a punch to an unsuspecting opponent, Colorado’s Samuel Girard. Date and time TBD.
— NHL Player Safety (@NHLPlayerSafety) December 24, 2017