Diagnosing three straight Canucks losses ft. Frank Seravalli: Canucks Conversation
5 months ago
On today’s episode of Canucks Conversation, David Quadrelli and Harman Dayal were joined by NHL insider Frank Seravalli to break down the Canucks’ current 3-game losing streak – their longest of the season.
“The whole NHL ratchets up,” said Frank, emphasizing the contrast between the level of play early in the year vs. now. “Winning games in October is not the same as winning games in February and March. A lot of teams are realizing that, while others are looking at the standings saying, ‘hey, the Canucks have been at the very top of the league for a long time. Let’s see if we can knock them down a peg and how we stack up against one of the league’s best teams’. Part of what we’re seeing is exactly what Rick Tocchet and his team were trying to guard against coming out of the All-Star break: ‘Yes, we’ve added some pieces here, and the Lindholm trade is a big deal, but we can’t take a step back or our foot off the gas just because our lineup has been strengthened. If anything, we need to continue to push even harder.”
With the Canucks having been stagnant since acquiring Lindholm, considered by many to be the highest-caliber forward available, there’s been more discussion about whether they’ll make another splash on the market. Flames defenseman and former Canuck Chris Tanev is rumoured to be on the Canucks’ radar, which shouldn’t come as a surprise given Calgary’s apparent decision to be sellers and the active trade relationship between the two clubs’ GMs.
“Nothing has changed with the Tanev situation in Calgary. The Canucks are still sniffing around to understand the price and make sure they remain in the mix,” said Frank. “They’re evaluating a bunch of different options, and I’ll say this: I’d be surprised if we get through 3 pm Eastern on March 3rd [trade deadline] and the Canucks haven’t made another trade. It’s in their M.O. – they’ve been the most aggressive trading team for the last calendar year, and they still have more to fix. They need a depth defenseman. I’m not entirely convinced they need someone of Tanev’s calibre, but it wouldn’t hurt. They realize they have a great opportunity here to make noise in the playoffs with the foundational pillars they have on this team.”
Critics were quick to slam the Canucks amidst their slump, with many pointing to a ‘lack of experience’ or ‘inability to win big games’ and suggesting these tendencies would lead to a quick exit in the playoffs.
“One of the things the Canucks are going to bump up against when it comes to the playoffs in April is this idea that you can’t go on and win because you haven’t had playoff success before,” Frank said. “I don’t know if that’s absolutely a fact. In the last 15 years, there have been plenty of teams that have shown more is available to them when their window is just starting to open than many would realize. Why can’t it be the Canucks? Why can’t it be this year? They’re right there with all the other contending teams in the West.”
You can watch the full replay of today’s show in the video below:
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