It was a weekend of high hopes and high sticks for the Vancouver Canucks and their fans. Late-game fireworks against the Oilers certainly set the stage for a spirited rematch in Edmonton on Thursday. While we all wait for that one, the Monday mailbag will help you pass a few minutes. You had plenty on your minds this week, and we’ll do our best to answer some of the questions sent our way.
Yes. A thousand times, yes. Conor Garland had the safety of his teammates in mind as he did what he could to control the menace that is Connor McDavid. For crying out loud, JT Miller was on the ice. What if McDavid had high-sticked Miller and scuttled a pending trade in the process? Garland is a company man through and through and was simply protecting his teammate while also protecting an asset from common assault. I think that much is clear to anyone who watched the events unfold late on Saturday night. I just don’t know how you could come to any other conclusion. Or something like that.
I don’t think you go to the lengths the Canucks have reportedly gone to exploring trade options to back off at this point. Even if they have a successful week. I think they realize that something is off with this group this season, and they can no longer see a path forward with the top of the line-up they’ve got. A strong week for Miller may simply reinforce to interested parties that he is the kind of player they want to add. So, it may actually speed up the process and push a deal across the finish line. But I don’t see a scenario where the Canucks step back and think, because of a couple of strong games, that all is well and good again. Last year is last year, and it feels like the Canucks have come to the conclusion that change is required. 
This is an important part of the trade equation. If Miller is on the move, the spotlight on Elias Pettersson heats up exponentially in this market. And it’s already searing hot. We know Pettersson doesn’t like the noise that swirls around him on a regular basis. We also know that his on-ice performance has been highly disappointing this season. If Miller goes, the Canucks need Pettersson to regain the form that earned him the eight-year $92.8M contract last March. He may find the working environment more to his liking, but it also has to result in an uptick in production. I’m sure he has a sense of those dynamics, but if his on-ice performance doesn’t improve, he becomes the clear target for disgruntled members of the fan base.
How about for the past three months? The entire market has been screaming that in a loud and united voice. It’s been clear since the Canucks broke training camp that this defence wasn’t good enough. Even with Quinn Hughes dominating at a Hart Trophy candidate level and with a healthy Filip Hronek, there wasn’t enough mobility and puck movement from the remainder of the defence corps. It’s clear now that the Canucks miscalculated the value of Nikita Zadorov and even Ian Cole on the ice and in the locker room. The replacements have not measured up. Whenever we next hear from Patrik Allvin, please know that some form of that question will be put to the general manager. 
I’m not sure that it was direct criticism of the coach that led to strategic changes on Saturday, but the losses to Winnipeg and Los Angeles were clear proof that something had to give. The Canucks were far more direct in the first period than in recent games. As Tocchet said afterward, ‘they got to their game early.’ They got pucks behind the Oilers defence and got in on the forecheck. They generated 16 shots and scored a pair of power play goals. Tactically, Tocchet moved a struggling Pius Suter from third line centre to the wing with JT Miller and Conor Garland. That added some defensive heft to that line for the Connor McDavid match-up. Starting Demko seemed like the right choice to me despite him giving up five goals against the Kings. The Canucks need to get Demko a run of games to see if he can find his form of a year ago. And yes, even the timeout should be mentioned. It’s two games in a row now that Tocchet has used his timeout strategically well before the end of the game. On Saturday, he called it on a third period power play to rest his top players. They didn’t score on the man advantage, but the idea behind the timeout should be applauded.
In-season goaltending trades are rare and usually underwhelming. You don’t see many netminders move at the trade deadline. In Lankinen’s case, would the acquiring team be looking at him as a true number one? Most playoff-bound teams are set in net, so he’d likely be seen as a proven depth option. But who’s parting with significant assets for a 1B or even a backup? Probably not many. Is it possible there is a team out there that sees Lankinen as a starter for next year and beyond and wants to explore the market? I suppose that scenario can’t be discounted. But they could also wait until the end of the season and see if he shakes loose as an unrestricted free agent so that they don’t have to part with assets to land him. I think the Canucks would be looking at a decent draft pick, but not a first-rounder or a B-level prospect as the return for Lankinen. At that point, it’s probably worth keeping him and having a solid one-two punch for the stretch run and the post-season.
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