Canucks Army Monday Mailbag:

The season is finally underway, and wouldn’t you know it, the Canucks are 2-0-0. They’ve yet to secure their first regulation win, but as the adage goes, they don’t ask how they just ask how many.

Some of the more maligned acquisitions of this regime have figured relatively prominently in those victories, no less. That has to count for something. I don’t want to get ahead of myself, but maybe things won’t be so bad after all?

Yeah, I should just stop. Onward to the questions.

I honestly don’t have an answer to this one. Like I’ve said from day one: if literally everything goes right for the Canucks, they can be competitive for a playoff spot. I hadn’t accounted for their divisional opponents when I made that assessment, though. Injuries have already taken out the Los Angeles Kings starting goaltender, and the Anaheim Ducks are playing a dangerous game with Hampus Lindholm. 

I asked this question a few times in Canucks Army group chat. Shows how out of the loop I am. The Canucks will not be getting compensation for Glen Gulutzan. Compensation for executives and coaches is no longer a thing.

I’ll have you know the Calgary Flames are actually playing a much better brand of hockey to this point in the season as opposed to last. The problem is they’re suffering low shooting and save percentages. Wouldn’t be surprised in the slightest to see the Flames bounce back in a big way.

As for Jarvis, Jason Botchford was reporting in The Provies that Doug Jarvis had made substantive changes to the way the Canucks are approaching the neutral zone. I’ve yet to track these first two games, but the results speak for themselves.

Maybe everyone is better off with this new arrangement?

Well, I missed the entirety of the pre-season while I was on vacation in Los Angeles. Doesn’t mean I was immune to Troy Stecher Mania. My only regret is not getting the chance to catch him myself. Of course, I was impressed with what I saw in Penticton. So my answer would have to be Stecher.

I really, really deserve this. Still, I stand by my belief that nine times out of ten you get a better player drafting Valeri Nichushkin in Bo Horvat’s stead. A significantly better player at that. And frankly, I won’t be surprised if that’s still the case a few years from now. Nichushkin’s young as hell, and I wouldn’t rule out a return to NHL action.

In all seriousness, there’s no way you can tell me you wouldn’t want to see Nichushkin with the Sedin twins. I mean, how fun would that be?

Seeing as Markus Granlund is only 23-years-old, I certainly wouldn’t rule that out. It’s incredibly unlikely at this stage, but not out of the realm of possibility. 

Frankly, I’d like Granlund to prove that he’s a full-time NHL’er. Talking to one scout after the Granlund-Shinkaruk trade, he baulked at the notion that Granlund offered ‘certainty’ as an NHL player. When I thought about it, he had a point. The Flames tried their damnedest to make Granlund work. He just wasn’t particularly good. So my expectations aren’t particularly high, no. And these first two games haven’t really changed that.

I think so, yeah.

As with anything, context is key. In a world where Adam Larsson fetches Taylor Hall, it’s certainly feasible that the Canucks could find a return for Edler that improves the overall quality of their roster immediately. That said, there’s a reason defenceman fetch so pretty a penny on the trade market.

Edler is a one-man breakout machine. Losing him would be huge, especially without a feasible option to replace him. I’m as big a fan of Ben Hutton as you’ll find, but I have my reservations about his readiness for a second pair role, much less the first.

I’ve never been a particularly great forecaster of, well, anything, so you’ll have to bear with me on this one. That said, I’d expect Edler falls somewhere in the 30-35 point range, assuming an entire season’s worth of good health. I don’t see the Canucks giving Edler many power play looks this season, though, so I might take the under on that.

The Canucks are seventh in the league in venue and score adjusted Corsi. It’s a small sample size, but they’ve genuinely played well therein. 

It often gets lost in the shuffle, but Horvat’s already exceeded expectations offensively. This is a player that should’ve peaked as a third line scorer. That’s what his play in junior suggested he was most likely capable of. Of course, I didn’t expect he’d produce underlying two-way results like a sub-forth line centre though either. So, it’s hard to reconcile what exactly Horvat’s been to this point, but he appears well on track to becoming a second line centre.

As for Hutton, I’ve already cast doubt on whether he’s ready to embrace a second pairing role. So I would suggest he’s likely not at that level. Not yet, anyways. I’d like to think he could get there, though.

Hutton’s getting a lot of shine in this Mailbag. So, sure, why not Hutton?

He develops into a full-time NHL player.

Hampus Lindholm is probably three times the defenceman Erik Gudbranson is, and that’s not a knock on Gudbranson. Lindholm’s probably the single best shutdown defender in the NHL. Honestly, though, knowing what I do about this regime and how they handle negotiations, it’ll be a heck of a lot closer than it should be. Frankly, I wouldn’t even be overly surprised if Gudbranson is making more when the dust’s settled. 

They tried for Nichsuhkin at last year’s deadline when they fumbled the ball on Dan Hamhuis. Take from that what you will. At the very least, it shows they have interest. They could certainly use a player like Nichushkin in their system.

Hutton developing into a first pair defender wouldn’t surprise me in the slightest. I don’t know if it’s the most likely outcome, but I’d suggest that’s reasonable as a ceiling. I often struggle with comparables, so take this with a grain of salt, but he reminds me of Cam Fowler stylistically. 

I think Luca Sbisa’s good start has been generally overstated. He’s looked bad, hell, awful on more than one occasion, though the body of work, on the whole, has been better than expected. Granlund’s looked okay. Haven’t been overly impressed. Again, though, he’s been better than expected. 

Nikita Tryamkin’s agent probably doesn’t know that, because most people don’t know that, because it’s probably not true. Would Tryamkin benefit from taking regular shifts in Utica? Yeah, probably. Is his career doomed as a result of him not getting those reps? Seems like a stretch.

I’m going to operate under the assumption that this question is about who the best pick would’ve been for the Canucks at the 2016 NHL Draft. As a qualifier, I haven’t any real complaints with the Olli Juolevi selection. Wouldn’t have made that call myself, but it’s entirely defensible.

I’ve bounced back and forth on this one, but I keep landing at Clayton Keller as the best option for the Canucks at five. If they absolutely had to take a defenceman, though, I felt it was Mikhail Sergachyov and everyone else. I’d have been very, very happy with either of those picks.