I recently gave Canucks defenseman Troy Stecher props for an entertaining Twitter feed, highlighted by the photos of his adorable puppy Phoebe.
Phoebe also has her own Instagram account—and she was on the Island this weekend.
She's getting big, fast!
It looks like the Canucks' May workout camp for its young players has come to a close. Stecher was back in town on Monday, playing in the Canucks' alumni golf tourmanent. Nice day for it!
Ben Hutton has also de-camped, meeting up with his old college teammates from Maine in Atlantic City over Memorial Day weekend.
Nikolay Goldobin does his best social media work on Twitter. Over the past couple of weeks he has gone through local rites of passage like seeking out a tennis court, visiting Grouse Mountain and getting his name misspelled by a Starbucks barista. Now, he's moving on to critiquing the arts.
As I mentioned last week, it's now confirmed that forward Drew Shore won't be returning to the Canucks next season. The 26-year-old centre has signed in Switzerland, with the Zurich Lions.
After Jim Benning reiterated that he wants to bring Ryan Miller back again next season, Ed Willes gave his thoughts on the idea in his Monday Morning Musings this week.
Willes drills down to a pretty salient point.
Miller and Jacob Markstrom should provide stability at the game’s most important position. Their presence, in turn, will allow the Canucks’ younger players to develop in a competitive environment which should accelerate their growth.
If everything goes according to plan the Canucks will be in the playoff mix next season and that will set the franchise back on track — both on and off the ice.
That, at least, is the theory. The problem is the team has had the same goaltending tandem the last two seasons and finished 29th and 28th respectively in the NHL. If the Canucks’ goaltending gave them an edge, you’d have a hard time proving it by the standings.
The upcoming season, moreover, projects as more of the same. The Canucks are trying to get younger. Their best prospects are still a couple of years away. They’re not ready to win yet nor are they particularly close and Miller won’t be around when the Canucks turn the corner.
So what does bringing him back accomplish?
Miller didn't have a real easy time last year. His 54 games and 3,229 minutes played were his heaviest workload since his 2011-12 season with Buffalo. The Canucks also bled shots late in the season. They finished eighth overall with an average of 31.9 shots against per game for the full season but from February 1 till the end of the year, that number ballooned up to 33.25 shots against.
Miller's .914 save percentage in 2016-17 was right at his career average of .915 but due to all those shots, he posted a 2.80 goals-against average—the second-highest of his career.
I've said before—I'd be perfectly happy to see the Canucks run with Markstrom and Richard Bachman next season. Even if the team is dead set on bringing in a UFA goaltender, why not consider someone younger?
Click here for CapFriendly's list of free-agent goaltenders currently on the market. Nine had better goals-against averages than Miller and five of them are in their 20s. Mike Condon is 27 and almost certainly won't be returning to Ottawa. What about Buffalo's Anders Nilsson, who laid down a .923 save percentage behind a team that was tops in the league with 34.3 shots allowed per game—and who made just $1 million last season?
There are options. I'm frustrated that Jim Benning seems so dead set on bringing back Miller.
Speaking to Joey Kenward on Monday, Benning does mention that the Canucks' pro scouting group has done their own 'mock expansion draft' and will now be seeing if there are deals to be made that can improve the team.
As things currently stand, there are some good players around the league that might end up being exposed, but the easiest solution for teams in those situations is to move expansion draft-eligible players for draft picks or prospects that are protected—exactly what Vancouver needs to hold onto.
I suppose a two-for-one deal might work in some situations, where a team would be willing to trade two expansion-draft eligible players and get just one eligible player back. But that one player would have to be an upgrade—otherwise, the team might as well just protect the better player in the deal and let the second one be exposed.
Benning says there are lots of conversations going on among the league's general managers at the moment. He expects there could be plenty of trades, even between the expansion draft and the amateur draft, but it's all uncharted territory this year.
This week, the Canucks are at the Draft Combine. Player interviews take place from now until Friday, with 104 players on hand, and Benning says the Canucks have a full schedule.
Vancouver Canucks Blogger • 
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