Some have been answered and some still remain.
Ones that have been answered are generally surrounding the twins and Radim Vrbata. So far the twins have had a bounce back season and we have seen that they play well with Vrbata in offensive zone play.
Another big question was about Miller and how he would handle the Western conference and its style of play. So far he has been a bit of a bright star. With a 10-2 record to start the year Miller has played a lot already and played well, for the most part. He has a GAA of 2.42 and a SV% of .913 so far and boasts 1 shut out.
He has stole games for this team already this year (vs SJS) and he has been shelled as well. (DAL/LAK) Even though there have been a couple games where the Canucks fall apart and lost by a large margin, Miller seems to forget those games before they are even over and is focused on the next match up. And as a goaltender you have to be able to do that. If you get pulled during a bad game, shake it off and move on. Miller seems to have perfected this tactic, (probably during his run in Buffalo).
Goal scoring for the Canucks this season seems to have come from all directions. In previous seasons the Canucks have struggled to get secondary scoring from their bottom six and relied heavily on the Sedin line to get most of their points. This season however seems to be different. On their roster there are only 4 players who have played 10+ games and haven't scored a goal. All of them being defensemen.
With the Canucks not being known for their offensive defensemen at all, knew that they would get most of their points from the forwards. It is always nice to have a d man chip in with some points but Vancouver doesn't rely on them to be top end point producers.
The forward lines for the Canucks have shared the scoring duties this season (so far) and done so with regularity. All 4 lines have had their names added to the scoresheet and not in a bad way. When Derek Dorsett has 2 goals and 5 points and the season in only 15 games old, you could say that the scoring has been spread around.
Of course the Sedin's and Vrbata are still going to be relied upon to lead the way in points and so far this season they have done so, but they aren't running away from the rest of the team in the pts column. A couple of players who are pleasant surprises this season and who are nipping at the heels of the top line for point leaders are Nick Bonino and Linden Vey. They have 12 and 8 points respectively and have shown that they can be leaned on to play in key situations when needed. Chris Higgins is another player (he sits between Bonino and Vey in points with 10) who is capable of producing goals and helping lift some pressure from the top line. And the list goes on through the whole roster with point production.
Now having touched on goaltending and scoring and a bit on defense, it has to be mentioned that with all of the point production and 47 goals for so far this season, the defensive side of things hasn't been as tight as many people want it to be. The Canucks have allowed 43 goals against so far leaving them with the +4 differential which isn't very good. It is still in the positive side of things but not by much.
But it should be known that 11 of the goals against came from two terrible games against Dallas and Los Angeles. Knock a few of those goals off the list and things look a little better, but we can't do that. Things haven't been a total disaster on the defensive side, but some times they haven't been the greatest either. If the Canucks can spread out the defensive responsibilities like they have the scoring then thing would probably look a lot better. Strong backchecking and good positional play is key in your own zone and they know it. They just have to remember to apply themselves sometimes.
All in all, the Vancouver Canucks have had a decent start to the season so far and should be able to maintain their style of play for the rest of the way. Factors will eventually come into play be it through injuries or slumps but if the Canucks can continue to play as a team and help each other along like they have, it shouldn't be a surprise if they make the playoffs.
As a huge Canucks fan, it is nice to see how this team is playing (for the most part), and I look forward to what the rest of the season may bring. Of course I want them in the playoffs and to make a run at the Stanley Cup but it has to come one step at a time. Things have gotten back on track it seems compared to last season so lets hope that they can continue on this path and prove the pre season predictions wrong and make the playoffs.
Thanks for reading and remember to get out and support your local minor league teams and players.
Like, Follow, Share and Comment on this post if you enjoyed reading it.
Until next time.
No comments:
Post a Comment