Vancouver Canucks Offseason Blueprint for Change: Part 3

The Vancouver Canucks lost its trademark of being one of the most stable defensive teams in the NHL this playoffs.

The top-6 defense lost offensive defenseman Christian Ehrhoff via unrestricted free agency, and they tried to find replacements from within without much success.

What happened in 2012 Stanley Cup playoffs is that the defensemen got hit hard and frequently when retrieving pucks in their own zone over the course of the first-round series against the Los Angeles Kings. As the time wore on, the blue liners became hesitant going back to get the puck.

This season, the defensive corps consisted of Dan Hamhuis, Kevin Bieksa, Alex Edler, Sami Salo, Keith Ballard, and Chris Tanev. The extras composed of Aaron Rome, Andrew Alberts and Marc-Andre Gragnani.

The problem I saw from the defensive perspective was that the team relied heavily on Dan Hamhuis in their own end, and rotated Bieksa, Edler and Salo for the additional work to shut down and play against the top forwards on the opposite side.

However, the issue is that Edler and Salo are also relied on for big minutes on the power play, so that makes it harder for the coaching staff to distribute the minutes.

The proposal here is for the Canucks to sign a free-agent defenseman who can assist Hamhuis in a shutdown role, and also be a significant physical force that can shake off fore-checkers in his own zone.

A list of potential candidates for that role would be:

Player	Career Games	Size	+/- last season	Notes
Bryan Allen	601	6'5'' 226lbs	-1	Former-Canuck, great shot-blocker w/size.
Hal Gill	1070	6'7'' 244lbs	+4	Former-Cup Champion. Knows how to win.
Cory Sarich	887	6'4'' 207lbs	+1	Physical and chips in points occasionally.
Matt Carkner	162	6'4'' 238lbs	Even	Big physical force, plays a simple game.
Ryan Suter	542	6'1'' 198lbs	+15	Prized free-agent. Workhorse minutes.

In the next sequel of Offseason Blueprint to Change, we will discuss the Canucks' offense and the power play.

In case you missed it:

Part 1 of Offseason Blueprint to Change on Player Personnel Changes.

Part 2 of Offseason Blueprint to Change on Increasing Team Toughness.

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