When it comes to improving at the National Hockey League level, Ben Hutton wants to give it his best shot. 

For the impressive rookie defenseman that will include a summer spent working on the way he unloads the puck. Hutton doesn’t believe the Vancouver Canucks have seen his best shot, yet.  

The issue isn’t so much the shot itself as it is when and how Hutton uses it.

“I don’t think he shoots enough,” head coach Willie Desjardins says bluntly when asked about Hutton’s shooting ability especially as the lone point man on the team’s first power play unit the past two months.” I think he’s in position and he just doesn’t shoot and that’s taking charge. If you don’t shoot, you’re not taking charge of what’s going to happen. It’s kind of like you’re moving it to somebody else and sometimes he’s got to take charge and be the guy that gets the puck to the net. That’s especially true on the power play where he’s passed up some shots that he shouldn’t pass up.”

Hutton isn’t hiding from the coach’s assessment. With two shots on Monday against Los Angeles, Hutton now has 100 shots in 72 NHL games, so he hasn’t exactly thrown a scare into opposing netminders this season (1.4 shots per game and 3.57 shots per 60 minutes at even strength). According to NHL.com, only 23 of his shots this season have come with the man-advantage. The league statistics also show 60 of Hutton’s pucks on net have been wrist shots while he’s opted for a slap shot on just 27 occasions. Hutton registered a season-high six shots on goal in a game against St. Louis in October and on two occasions since has put four shots on net. Otherwise, he’s been limited in his capacity to get pucks on the target.

With just one goal to show for his efforts this season (an in-tight goal against the Islanders in Brooklyn in January), Hutton has yet to show a willingness or an ability to blow pucks past netminders at the NHL level. As Wayne Gretzky once famously uttered: ‘you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.’ That saying could easily apply to Hutton.

“I definitely have passed up some shots,” he concedes. “I don’t know if it’s in the back of my mind that I haven’t been scoring, so I’ll try to find a guy back door or with a shot to tip, but things are happening so fast out there and you’re making split-second decisions – it’s pass or shoot right away.”

A little too often, Hutton, who turns 23 later this month, has opted to feather a puck elsewhere rather than fire away.

If Hutton can improve his shot, it stands to make the Canucks power play better. He’ll become a shooting threat from the point and if more pucks get through traffic, Hutton has the chance to score himself, his shots can be tipped in front or they can produce rebound opportunities for his teammates. Since Hutton replaced the injured Alex Edler on the point on the top unit of the power play two months ago, the Canucks showed some early flashes but since then have struggled mightily with the man-advantage going two for their last 42 over the past 15 games. That’s hardly all on Hutton, but he plays a key role on that unit these days.

While it has been frustrating, it has also been a terrific learning experience for a young player like Hutton to get on the job training running an NHL power play in his rookie season.

“I think that’s something I can definitely work on in the off-season,” he says of his shot. “I’d like to see the puck go in a little more whether that’s a harder shot or a quicker release — obviously both can help against the best goalies in the world. So if I can work on that in the off-season it’ll be big coming into next year. I have to get my reps in shooting the puck and spend time in the gym getting bigger and stronger.”

Hutton doesn’t think there is anything wrong with his shooting technique and admits he’s a little surprised he has been unable to contribute more offensively. He scored 15 goals as a sophomore at the University of Maine and backed that up with nine more in his final season of NCAA hockey a year ago. So he knows where the net is.

“I think my shot is on par with most guys, but I’ve only put the puck in the net once,” he adds. “If I can get to that next level, get an edge on my shot, I’ll hopefully score a little more. A better shot is just one more tool to have.”

With 22 helpers to go along with his goal, Hutton sits third in rookie scoring among all NHL defensemen. However, his 100 shot total falls far behind the likes of leaders Colton Parayko (162) of St. Louis, Philadelphia Calder candidate Shayne Gostisbehere (142) and Carolina’s Noah Hanifin and Edmonton’s Darnell Nurse (both 115). Of that group only Parayko has seen more ice this season and only Gostisbehere and Hanifin average more power play time per game than Hutton.

Overall, Hutton’s first season with the Canucks has been a raging success on an individual level and if what he’s shown as a rookie is the baseline from where he will grow his game, then it will be exciting to watch his future development. If he is able to add an element of heat from the point, he stands a chance to be the Canucks next 50 point defenseman and the guy who can run their power play for the next decade.

All of that is for the future. As for right now and the fact he has just one goal with time winding down on the season, in typical Hutton fashion — and with a flash of his trademark smile — he chooses to take an optimistic view of the remaining games on the schedule.

“We’re not done yet and there’s still time to get a few more,” he says.