The <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/combinations">Vancouver Canucks</a> have had a ton of different looks on the power play this season. The team’s power play is currently ranked 14th in the league at 22.6%. This is the slightest decrease from last season&#8217;s percentage of 22.7%.
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Throughout the season, the team have seen a bunch of different looks on the power play. Canucks Assistant Coach Yogi Švejkovský has given a variety of players opportunities to be on one of the power play units and has tried different setups and breakouts.
<h1>Offensive zone setup</h1>
Currently, the Canucks run a different setup than we’re used to seeing on the power play. For a while, the team had a defenceman quarterbacking the power play, with two players on each of the half-walls, one in the bumper position and one at the net front. 
Since <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/vancouver-canucks-officially-announce-jt-miller-trade-new-york-rangers">JT Miller&#8217;s move to the New York Rangers</a>, the setup has shifted to having the same defenceman quarterback and two players at the tops of the circles. However, now they feature two players standing net front with no one in the bumper position. 
The reasoning behind this likely stems from a lack of shooting. Two players being at the net front can create more traffic, which should encourage players to shoot. On top of this, most teams tend to have a diamond setup on their penalty kill. 
When the puck gets moved from the player in the quarterback spot to a player at the top of the circle, one of the net front players bounces out to the bottom of the circle for the puck to be moved down low. If the passing lane is there, the player at the bottom of the circle has a mini two-on-one and can take the puck to the net or move it back door to the net front player.
This is a play we saw most recently against the Utah Hockey Club, where Pius Suter received a pass on the half wall, moved it down to <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/could-detroit-red-wings-vancouver-canucks-link-up-elias-pettersson-trade">Elias Pettersson</a>, who then fed it back door to Jake DeBrusk for the Canucks only goal in that game.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
🚨CANUCKS SCORRRRRE🚨
EP40 sets up Jake DeBrusk, who slides the puck through Karel Vejmelka to give the Canucks the opening goal!<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Canucks?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Canucks</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/UtahHC?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#UtahHC</a> 🎥: Sportsnet | NHL <a href="https://t.co/vuZjY4sK0X">pic.twitter.com/vuZjY4sK0X</a>
&mdash; CanucksArmy (@CanucksArmy) <a href="https://twitter.com/CanucksArmy/status/1893845371022889374?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 24, 2025</a></blockquote>
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With the bumper options, teams that run this type of power play tend to look for the perfect opportunity to get a shot or scoring chance. The Canucks new power play setup is meant to generate those mini two-on-ones, as well as create havoc out front in hopes of getting goals off of tips or rebounds. Lots of movement is needed from the players on the ice; no one is stagnant or standing still in one spot, and pucks should get to the net as much as possible for this kind of power play to be effective. 
<h1>The breakout</h1>
Along with their new setup, the team has been trying a new breakout lately. The former drop pass breakout just didn’t seem to work as it did back when Henrik and Daniel Sedin were on the ice rather than in the front office. The drop pass breakout is the most effective when it’s picked up with speed through the neutral zone, taking advantage of the space the penalty-killing team has to give up. 
The change in the Canucks power play breakout is one that was needed, especially since the player picking up that drop pass was usually doing so flat-footed. 
The teams&#8217; new breakout forces players to pick up speed through the neutral zone. When the puck is dumped in, the defenceman will pick up the puck behind the net and delay. Three players swing through the Canucks zone, one up the left wing, one up the right wing and the other up the middle of the ice. The defenceman will then move the puck to whichever player the opposing team&#8217;s defence gives up, and that player, in theory, should have enough speed and space to carry the puck into the zone. The last player during this swing is at the opposing team&#8217;s blue line and can be used as a bumper if the penalty killers close in on whoever picks up the pass through the neutral zone.
The three-man swing is being used to generate speed, something that the Canucks have lacked on their power play breakout all season long. The bumper player at the far blue line supports the players flying through the neutral zone. 
<h1>The personnel</h1>
The Canucks have tried many different combinations on their power play units this season. This is partially due to injuries, but the team has also experimented with two evened-out units that feature the team&#8217;s top players on separate lines. 
If you want an effective power play at the NHL level, the best course of action is putting your top guys on the same unit. The best possible unit the Canucks could ice would feature <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/scenes-morning-skate-quinn-hughes-game-time-decision-vancouver-canucks-los-angeles-kings">Quinn Hughes</a> as the quarterback, <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/brock-boeser-says-its-frustrating-no-deal-done-with-vancouver-canucks-yet">Brock Boeser</a> on the left flank, Filip Chytil on the right and a combination of Jake DeBrusk and Elias Pettersson as the net front guys. Normally, Pettersson would be most effective on the right flank; however, his lack of shooting as of late makes him a better fit to be the net front guy who bounces out when the puck is moved to either flank. 
As we saw on DeBrusk’s goal in the game against Utah, Pettersson can be an effective playmaker from down low. Boeser and Hughes both possess high-end shots, while Chytil’s shooting ability and comfortability with the puck on his stick make them the best options for the flanks and quarterback spots. DeBrusk, of course, seems to have a nose for the net and his talent for finding and finishing off rebounds makes him a great fit to be one of the net front guys.
Though the Canucks power play has been solid this season, being in the upper half of the league. There are still many kinks that they need to work out to be seen as a real threat with the man advantage. That being said, the new setup and breakout have shown some promising potential.
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The <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/combinations">Vancouver Canucks</a> have had a ton of different looks on the power play this season. The team’s power play is currently ranked 14th in the league at 22.6%. This is the slightest decrease from last season's percentage of 22.7%.
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Throughout the season, the team have seen a bunch of different looks on the power play. Canucks Assistant Coach Yogi Švejkovský has given a variety of players opportunities to be on one of the power play units and has tried different setups and breakouts.
<h1>Offensive zone setup</h1>
Currently, the Canucks run a different setup than we’re used to seeing on the power play. For a while, the team had a defenceman quarterbacking the power play, with two players on each of the half-walls, one in the bumper position and one at the net front. 

Since <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/vancouver-canucks-officially-announce-jt-miller-trade-new-york-rangers">JT Miller's move to the New York Rangers</a>, the setup has shifted to having the same defenceman quarterback and two players at the tops of the circles. However, now they feature two players standing net front with no one in the bumper position. 

The reasoning behind this likely stems from a lack of shooting. Two players being at the net front can create more traffic, which should encourage players to shoot. On top of this, most teams tend to have a diamond setup on their penalty kill. 

When the puck gets moved from the player in the quarterback spot to a player at the top of the circle, one of the net front players bounces out to the bottom of the circle for the puck to be moved down low. If the passing lane is there, the player at the bottom of the circle has a mini two-on-one and can take the puck to the net or move it back door to the net front player.

This is a play we saw most recently against the Utah Hockey Club, where Pius Suter received a pass on the half wall, moved it down to <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/could-detroit-red-wings-vancouver-canucks-link-up-elias-pettersson-trade">Elias Pettersson</a>, who then fed it back door to Jake DeBrusk for the Canucks only goal in that game.

https://twitter.com/CanucksArmy/status/1893845371022889374

With the bumper options, teams that run this type of power play tend to look for the perfect opportunity to get a shot or scoring chance. The Canucks new power play setup is meant to generate those mini two-on-ones, as well as create havoc out front in hopes of getting goals off of tips or rebounds. Lots of movement is needed from the players on the ice; no one is stagnant or standing still in one spot, and pucks should get to the net as much as possible for this kind of power play to be effective. 
<h1>The breakout</h1>
Along with their new setup, the team has been trying a new breakout lately. The former drop pass breakout just didn’t seem to work as it did back when Henrik and Daniel Sedin were on the ice rather than in the front office. The drop pass breakout is the most effective when it’s picked up with speed through the neutral zone, taking advantage of the space the penalty-killing team has to give up. 

The change in the Canucks power play breakout is one that was needed, especially since the player picking up that drop pass was usually doing so flat-footed. 

The teams' new breakout forces players to pick up speed through the neutral zone. When the puck is dumped in, the defenceman will pick up the puck behind the net and delay. Three players swing through the Canucks zone, one up the left wing, one up the right wing and the other up the middle of the ice. The defenceman will then move the puck to whichever player the opposing team's defence gives up, and that player, in theory, should have enough speed and space to carry the puck into the zone. The last player during this swing is at the opposing team's blue line and can be used as a bumper if the penalty killers close in on whoever picks up the pass through the neutral zone.

The three-man swing is being used to generate speed, something that the Canucks have lacked on their power play breakout all season long. The bumper player at the far blue line supports the players flying through the neutral zone. 
<h1>The personnel</h1>
The Canucks have tried many different combinations on their power play units this season. This is partially due to injuries, but the team has also experimented with two evened-out units that feature the team's top players on separate lines. 

If you want an effective power play at the NHL level, the best course of action is putting your top guys on the same unit. The best possible unit the Canucks could ice would feature <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/scenes-morning-skate-quinn-hughes-game-time-decision-vancouver-canucks-los-angeles-kings">Quinn Hughes</a> as the quarterback, <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/brock-boeser-says-its-frustrating-no-deal-done-with-vancouver-canucks-yet">Brock Boeser</a> on the left flank, Filip Chytil on the right and a combination of Jake DeBrusk and Elias Pettersson as the net front guys. Normally, Pettersson would be most effective on the right flank; however, his lack of shooting as of late makes him a better fit to be the net front guy who bounces out when the puck is moved to either flank. 

As we saw on DeBrusk’s goal in the game against Utah, Pettersson can be an effective playmaker from down low. Boeser and Hughes both possess high-end shots, while Chytil’s shooting ability and comfortability with the puck on his stick make them the best options for the flanks and quarterback spots. DeBrusk, of course, seems to have a nose for the net and his talent for finding and finishing off rebounds makes him a great fit to be one of the net front guys.

Though the Canucks power play has been solid this season, being in the upper half of the league. There are still many kinks that they need to work out to be seen as a real threat with the man advantage. That being said, the new setup and breakout have shown some promising potential.

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Breaking down the Canucks’ new power play set up and breakout strategies

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