Let’s just give it to you straight. Here are the total faceoff numbers over the last 10 Vancouver Canucks games.

Washington: 45.5%
St Louis: 44.4%
Nashville: 34%
Dallas: 43.4%
Detroit: 59.3%
Colorado: 46.6%
San Jose: 42.9%
Toronto: 38.6%
Vegas: 50%
Utah: 53.6%

Even though things have gotten better over their last two games, those numbers just aren’t good enough.

At the time of this writing, the Canucks rank 21st in terms of league-wide faceoff winning percentage at 49.57%. And those numbers obviously include when they had JT Miller for the bulk of the season. The worst-ranked team in the dot is the Anaheim Ducks at 43%, but the margins are relatively thin beyond that:

The good news is that the Canucks have a solution to what feels fair to categorize as a problem in the dot.

They can call up Aatu Räty.

After coming knocking down the door at training camp en route to earning a roster spot, Aatu Räty’s first NHL stint didn’t last all that long. He’s bounced up and down from the AHL and NHL all season long. To this point, he’s got 21 games played at the NHL level and 31 in the minors.

The point totals — two goals and two assists — at the NHL level are obviously disappointing, and Räty has struggled to make the offence translate at the next level. In the AHL, he’s a near-point-per-game player who can play in all situations and is one of head coach Manny Malhotra’s most trusted players. In the NHL, he’s a bottom-six centre with limited offensive upside.

One thing Räty can do very well, regardless of the level he’s playing at, though? Win faceoffs.

And right now, the Canucks need more faceoff wins.

It doesn’t seem like it would be all that difficult to find a spot for Räty in the Canucks’ NHL lineup. Right now, their centres are Elias Pettersson, Filip Chytil, Pius Suter, and Teddy Blueger.

Recently, Nils Aman — another guy who is at his best when playing in the AHL — was playing on the wing of the Canucks’ fourth line. Arshdeep Bains got a turn there on Sunday in Utah. Given that Aman, who has similar offensive limitations to Räty without the face-off prowess, has gotten into three of the Canucks’ last four games, getting Räty into that spot shouldn’t be much of an issue.

Aman obviously doesn’t bring much offence, and on the season, he’s got a 37% faceoff winning percentage.

Meanwhile, while the 22-year-old Räty is going to bring similar play to Aman, his 56% faceoff percentage ranks first among all Canucks centres. Teddy Blueger sits in second at 50.3%, followed by Filip Chytil (47.2%), Elias Pettersson (45.8%), and Pius Suter (42.9%).

The Canucks are almost certainly going to want to change up their lines after this weekend’s game, and Räty would give them the flexibility to either run shotgun with Blueger or Suter on the wing like Aman has been, or have Räty centre the fourth line and free up Suter to go play the wing in the top six — a spot he’s had success at in the past.

Räty has shown prowess in the faceoff dot like few Canucks have this season. Earlier this season, we chatted with Räty about his technique of flipping his stick to make every faceoff a strong-side faceoff. You can read that story by clicking here!

Get ready, hockey fans! The Daily Faceoff Deadline is happening on March 7th from 11 AM to 4 PM Eastern, and you won’t want to miss it. We’ll be LIVE, breaking down every trade and big move as it happens, with instant reactions and expert analysis from the Daily Faceoff crew. Plus, we’ve got special guests lined up throughout the show, offering exclusive insights from some of the biggest names in the game. From blockbuster trades to surprise moves, we’re covering it all. Tune in to the Daily Faceoff YouTube channel and follow Daily Faceoff socials on March 7th to catch all the action!