The Biggest Problem Facing Each Canadian NHL Team

The NHL playoffs have not been free of Canadian content since 1970. Yet all seven current Canadian clubs are playing out the string of the 2015-16 season with no hope of appearing in the postseason. That stat will reset after 46 years.

Worse, the north-of-the-border franchises were not even close to the hunt. In fact, they make up seven of the bottom 10 teams in the standings at the moment, including the bottom three and four of the final five.

Sure, they'll have a blast at the upcoming draft lottery and 2016 NHL Entry Draft, but this has been a long season for hockey fans in Canada.

The Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers, Montreal Canadiens, Ottawa Senators, Toronto Maple Leafs, Vancouver Canucks and Winnipeg Jets all have their problems—big ones, clearly, and more than one, to be sure.

We'll take a look at the biggest problem each of these Canadian clubs is facing and what might be done about it as they all battle for a better pick in the draft lottery.

Stats all via NHL.com.

Calgary Flames

Gary Wiepert/Associated Press

Where they stand: 76 games, 32-38-6 record, 70 points, 11th in Western Conference, 25th in NHL

The Problem: Goaltending

Analysis: The Calgary Flames have the worst goals-against average in the entire league thanks to horrific years from basically every netminder to have pulled on the Flaming C sweater so far. Karri Ramo was so bad early on that he was sent to the minors, only to be recalled when an even more awful Jonas Hiller got hurt. Ramo improved marginally before suffering a season-ending injury of his own.

Third-stringer Joni Ortio—who had a nice stretch in the NHL last year—has looked overwhelmed this season. Nicklas Backstrom, who joined essentially as a salary dump in the Minnesota Wild deal for David Jones, may be the worst of the bunch. Backstrom has an .863 save percentage and 3.51 goals-against average in two starts. Hiller has an .883 save percentage and 3.39 GAA in 25 appearances. Ortio has a .903 save percentage and 2.76 GAA in 18 games. Ramo has a .909 save percentage and 2.63 GAA in 37 games.

Possible Solution: The Flames' future between the pipes took a bit of a hit when arguably their top prospect at the position, John Gillies, was lost for the season in December because of hip surgery. But between him and fellow draft pick Mason McDonald, there is a lot of seasoning needed. The Flames will likely have to make a play for an unrestricted free agent this summer or make a deal for someone on the trade market in order to fill the gap, with both Hiller and Ramo pending UFAs themselves. James Reimer or Frederik Andersen may fit the bill.

Edmonton Oilers

Gary Wiepert/Associated Press

Where they stand: 79 games, 30-42-7 record, 67 points, last in Western Conference, 29th in the NHL

The Problem: Lack of offense from the defense

Analysis: Only one member of the Edmonton Oilers defense ranks among the team's top 12 scorers, and no one has more than six goals. The team has decent top-nine depth up front when healthy, but only veteran Andrej Sekera is anywhere near 30 points this season on the back end. Not only does the team lack a top-end defenseman with puck-moving and power-play quarterbacking skills, but it has a complete shortfall of depth at the position.

Possible Solution: It's time to make a big trade and move some of the skilled forward parts for a standout defenseman. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins might find himself as the team's third-best center with Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl more suited to the top roles, and teams with the right depth at defense that do not fear his health issues over the years could covet his skills. Aside from that, they might be forced to use their lottery pick in 2016 as part of a blockbuster deal—or even go off the board and select a blueliner higher than he would rank under the best-available-player strategy.

Montreal Canadiens

Paul Bereswill/Associated Press

Where they stand: 76 games, 34-36-6 record, 74 points, 13th in the Eastern Conference, 22nd in NHL

The Problem: Too reliant on top players

Analysis: Goaltender Carey Price won the Hart Trophy last season for carrying the team into the playoffs despite some pretty poor play from the guys in front of him on the ice. This season, Price went down with injury having won 10 of his 12 starts, and the Canadiens completely tanked the rest of the way, finding themselves outside the playoff picture for the second time since 2003. Behind the top trio of Alex Galchenyuk, Max Pacioretty and Brendan Gallagher up front, there hasn't been much consistency of offensive production.

Possible Solution: When it comes to offense, they simply need to add more talent. The others are not getting it done any longer. At least missing the playoffs could lead to better draft chances—they do have three picks in the first two rounds. As for the goaltender situation, it's not like you can suggest the team sit its superstar more often. You just have to hope Price returns fully healthy for next year.

Ottawa Senators

Kathy Willens/Associated Press

Where they stand: 34-33-9, 77 points, 12th in the Eastern Conference, 21st in the NHL

The Problem: No team allows as many shots against per game

Analysis: Thanks to a porous defense, the Ottawa Senators are letting 32.9 shots against per game this season. That's putting a great deal of pressure on veterans Craig Anderson and Andrew Hammond on a nightly basis. Adding Dion Phaneuf before the trade deadline did nothing for the team's defensive play, and superstar Erik Karlsson is still an inconsistent player on his own side of the blue line. Only the Colorado Avalanche and Arizona Coyotes have worse possession numbers, according to NHL.com's SAT percentage in close games (one-goal leads or tie games in the third period).

Possible Solution: The Senators have limited their ability to add another top-end defenseman because of the addition of Phaneuf—who is not the kind of responsible defensive player the team requires. The team needs to focus on a different type of player in the offseason.

Toronto Maple Leafs

Alex Brandon/Associated Press

Where they stand: 75 games played, 27-37-11 record, 65 points, last in Eastern Conference, last in NHL

The Problem: The rebuild is going to take some time; patience needed

Analysis: The Maple Leafs need help everywhere, from the offensive side of the stats, where they've scored a third-worst 2.33 goals per game on average and have the second-worst power play clicking at 14.6 percent, to the defensive areas that have led to the eighth-worst GAA. There may be no more time-consuming project on the horizon than this rebuild. The passionate fanbase has already endured so much pain and losing, even prior to the determination that it was time to blow this team up.

Possible Solution: There's not much that can be done. You can't speed this process up, and while the Leafs seem to have a few talented youngsters on the team like William Nylander, many more wise additions will have to be made at upcoming drafts. Fortunately, the team has four picks in the first two rounds in each of the next two drafts.

Vancouver Canucks

Mark Humphrey/Associated Press

Where they stand: 75 games played, 27-35-13, 67 points, 13th in Western Conference, 27th in NHL

The Problem: An offense featuring the Sedin Twins is stagnant

Analysis: The Vancouver Canucks have scored just 2.23 goals this season on average, worst among all Canadian teams and second-worst in the entire league behind the New Jersey Devils. And the drop-off after Henrik and Daniel Sedin's names in the team point race is abysmal—Daniel has nearly double the points of Bo Horvat, the third-place finisher on the Canucks roster with 12 goals and 33 points.

Possible Solution: More help is needed up front before the window of opportunity to win with the twins closes. That much is clear. But the team has taken the approach of a bit of a hybrid rebuild through trades, free-agent signings and the draft. A better job will have to be done in the coming months, because moves like the addition of Brandon Sutter and Radim Vrbata have not panned out, and the team is among the very worst in the league. Maybe they should consider trading the twins and do a more robust rebuild.

Winnipeg Jets

Bruce Fedyck-USA TODAY Sports

Where they stand: 76 games, 31-38-7 record, 69 points, 12th in Western Conference, 26th in NHL

The Problem: Their special teams units are both brutal

Analysis: Often, a team that struggles on the power play has a decent penalty kill. The players are just more suited to excelling in one area than the other. That's not the case for the Winnipeg Jets, who own the worst-ranked power-play unit with a 14.3 percent success rate and are the sixth-worst penalty-killers at 78.4 percent. The team parted ways with captain Andrew Ladd at the trade deadline this year and, because of budgetary concerns, has a real lack of star power.

Possible Solution: The team has to focus on some puck-savvy forwards and gritty, hard-working defensemen or defensive forwards in the offseason, whether the Jets find some talent in free agency or swing a deal for the kinds of players who can help in either area. The draft won't improve them in these categories right away.