Season Preview - CANUCKS
How was Trevor Linden's first full offseason? We may have to wait and see on that, as he is on the record as pursuing a long term vision, and many moves were made with a bigger picture in mind than this very next year. However, neither ownership nor the fanbase will be satisfied with another drop off from a team that is only one year removed from a seven game finals appearance. The question for today is can this team be as competitive as it was last year? The answer, unfortunately for Canucks faithful, is probably not. Big moves were made, exciting ones, headline grabbers, but for all that this team looks to be stuck in neutral at best.
Who's IN:
D PK Subban
W Brandon Yip
W Jon Marchessault
C Joey Tenute
W Sergei Shirokov
W Enver Lisin
W Patrick Thoresen
C Jori Lehtera
Who's OUT:
D Alex Edler
D Brian Campbell
D Andrew Alberts
C Stephen Weiss
W Aaron Volpatti
W Joel Ward
Rob Schremp
The biggest addition, and long term wild card, is the exuberant, electrifying, and occasionally infuriating elite young blueliner Linden and co brought in with the blockbuster deal of the offseason. PK can be a building block for the blueline for a long time, an impact player, but there are also questions about his consistency and defense - can he grow into a legitimate, long term #1 blueliner? He could become the best defenseman in Canucks history, or just another overreach by a desperate club. Undrafted free agent Jon Marchessault impressed enough to earn a spot in the top six... or was the top six just that weak that an otherwise fringe player found his way in there? He looks like if he grows as a player he will be a shrewd pickup in few years, but right now he doesn't move the needle. Numerous depth additions show a transition to younger, faster, offensively gifted players for the bottom end of the roster, and Sergei Shirokov did look great in preseason, but is he ready to play a regular shift and hold his own at both ends of the ice? Joey Tenute was a training camp surprise, earning a contract and a spot in the opening lineup, but how will the career journeyman minor leaguer fare in the regular season? More questions than answers here.
Meanwhile, the departure of both Brian Campbell and Stephen Weiss, both plagued by injuries in their one year with the club, is mostly an admission that the return for superstar Roberto Luongo was lacklustre. Those two players still represent a significant amount of skill leaving the team though. Alex Edler is a top young defenseman in his prime, and moving him for Subban was a high risk/high reward decision. Edler's steady calming presence has been a mainstay since his arrival with the team, and he may be greatly missed. It remains to be seen how much of an upgrade the more noticeable Subban will be. Joel Ward was a foregone conclusion that he would be moving on, and consensus is that he was overpaid in free agency, although if he manages to get and stay healthy all year the Canucks may regret not overpaying for him themselves. Rob Schremp looks like another management misstep, looking decent in flashes last season and earning an extension, only to be lost on waivers in the numbers game. Are Patrick Thoresen, Jori Lehtera, etc, all unproven at the NHL level, really an upgrade over him?
Can this team still exceed expectations? If Schneider and Markstrom provide lights out goaltending, the ageing core pieces stay healthy and find their 2011 mojo, and the youthful additions overachieve, absolutely. But the odds are it will be a season of mediocrity for the club, maybe scratching out a playoff spot for an early exit, maybe continuing their descent from dominance at an accelerated pace. Henrik and Daniel Sedin are confident despite off years last season, and they will look to prove their doubters wrong yet again.
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