Vancouver Canucks Are Hot and Cold in Early Season

The Vancouver Canucks continue to demonstrate contrasting efforts on successive nights. Even with victories over the vaunted Red Wings and an improved Flames team, there are troubling indicators. Goals against is too high for the offense to overcome every night. The fact that no goals are being scored on the power play is a major reason why. Defensemen jumping in on the rush is a practiced art and the Canucks aren't used to it yet.

The best line has been the third line. This is good and bad. It's great that Hansen is fitting in. It's great that Burrows is hot. It's bad that the Sedins aren't. Sedin passes do seem to come from nowhere, but Bernier must get used to it. Anson Carter took time to learn the Sedin system too.

The second line just looks awkward. I think the Canucks will finish the current road trip and evaluate. Bieksa's return will make a difference. There is a push from the minors with RWs Ouellet, Jaffray, and Grabner, along with veterans Wellwood and Pettinger. There is depth at defense, although the loss of McIver hurt, as new players O'Brien and Davison are slower. Salo looked slow in Buffalo as well.

Most troubling for me is the powerplay or lack thereof. Teams without adequate talent have poor power plays. Teams with poor coaching have inadequate power plays. Which is it here? It's too early to declare either, of course, but the trend is emerging. I wonder if more firepower isn't needed. Vignault is already trying different lines. Demitra was out with the Sedins, a sure sign that all is not well.

The second line might not be together that long. This is problematic because they can't just be reshuffled. Demitra looks good at center and is creative with the puck. Pyatt is not a sniper or fearsome banger. Raymond is quick, but doesn't look ready to me. What to do? Demitra can move over to either wing, Rypien is on the roster at center, and Ouellet deserves a look. If Bernier keeps watching passes bounce off his stick, it will open another spot. Briefly, the Canucks might not have enough guys for the top lines, which shows up vividly on the power play.

The Canucks have some holes at forward. What about defense? Well, Hansen looks great, Mitchell can rush, and Bieksa and Ohlund look fine. Nycholat didn't look out of place. Salo is shooting more and O'Brien sticks his nose in. All good.

Goaltending isn't off to a great start. Luongo has looked fallible and Sanford did too. One of the problems the Canucks have had is an overworked starter. An upgrade might be in order if Luongo is to be rested at all. Sanford didn't do a very good job in Buffalo and could not carry the team in the event of an injury to Luongo. This situation cannot be ignored or easily resolved. Schnieder isn't ready to start in the NHL. But, lots of other teams have goaltending issues as well.

None of these concerns seem terminal. All might be overcame with patience. Bernier might look like an Esposito in December.

There is still plenty of time and plenty of cap space.