<em>The Tape series is back, but not how it is usually received. Typically, we would focus on a <a class="text-accent" href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/the-tape-jonathan-lekkerimaki-brief-stint-abbotsford-canucks" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">player's first few games as a Vancouver Canucks</a>, <a class="text-accent" href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/tape-analyzing-little-things-canucks-andrei-kuzmenko-done-right-two-games" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">how a player has elevated his play</a>, or a <a class="text-accent" href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/tape-canucks-adjust-shut-down-mcdavid-draisaitl-game-3" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">new successful tactical strategy</a> that worked in game. However, this time, we'll be examining the play of the top five free agents the Canucks signed this offseason (Jake DeBrusk, Danton Heinen, Vincent Desharnais, Kiefer Sherwood and Derek Forbort) and give you a visual of what to expect out of these players for next season.</em>
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Today, we analyze the play of 6'0 ", <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/canucks-sign-danton-heinen-kiefer-sherwood-two-year-deals">194-pound winger Kiefer Sherwood.</a>

Sherwood, 29, is coming off a career year. He finished with 10 goals and 27 points with a plus-17 rating. While the numbers don't jump off the page, considering he played just 68 games – predominantly in a fourth-line role – makes the player even more enticing. Sherwood signed a two-year contract that pays him $1.5 million annually.

The Canucks players are very familiar with how Sherwood plays, as they faced off against him twice in the regular season and six times in the playoffs. In his <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/patrik-allvin-reasonings-canucks-2024-free-agency">post-free agency media availability, Canucks General Manager Patrik Allvin</a> mentioned a conversation he had with Canucks captain Quinn Hughes regarding the Sherwood signing:

"I talked to Quinn [Hughes], and he was more excited about Sherwood than anybody; he [Hughes] said he [Sherwood} pissed the whole team off in the playoffs. He was happy to get him here."

That kind of testament, coming from the league's best defenceman last season, holds a lot of value in its own right. So I thought, why not dive into Sherwood's play in the six games series against the Canucks to see <em>exactly</em> what kind of player is coming to Vancouver.
<h1>The Tape</h1>
Why not start this article with some energy, just like Nashville Predators head coach Andrew Brunette did in Game 1, sending Sherwood out to open the game?

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And right off the faceoff, he brought that energy. Sherwood skates right to Nikita Zadorov and lays the body. Later in the shift, he shows off his wicked hand-eye by reaching out and batting a Brock Boeser pass attempt out of mid-air.

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Here is a short clip: Sherwood's speed didn't blow me away during the series, but, holy, he is fast. Watch how quickly he closes the large gap between him and Tyler Myers. Yes, we all know Myers isn't the fastest, but it's still a sizable gap for him to cover and nearly steal the puck. According to NHL Edge, Sherwood ranked in the 86th percentile for top-speed score, with a high of 23 MPH.

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Sherwood even earned himself some penalty kill time in Game 2. As Hughes tries to glide into the neutral zone, Sherwood pokes the puck off his stick for an easy clear. And instead of laying back and waiting for the Canucks to regroup, Sherwood uses his speed to put some pressure on Casey DeSmith. This leads to DeSmith rushing a pass along the boards, which results in a turnover. Sherwood then bulls his way over Dakota Joshua, circles back and finishes another hit on Filip Hronek. Like Hughes said; an annoying player to play against.

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We've mostly shown you his electric speed and annoyance on the ice. But his defensive game stood out during this clip. With his speed, Sherwood is so good at closing the gap to limit players' maneuverability. Hughes receives a cross-ice pass from Boeser with tons of room in front of him. Sherwood follows the pass and limits the area for Hughes to move, leading to a desperate pass back to Boeser. After a Pius Suter tip, Sherwood is quick on the rebound and manages to get the clearing attempt past a pressuring Ian Cole.

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Canucks fans will remember the difficult story that was Game 2 against Nashville when Vancouver just couldn't catch a break. Dakota Joshua seemingly had an open net in the third period to knot the game within one but couldn't bury it. Well, that was because Sherwood tied up his stick on his second chance. Sherwood's ability to stay strong on his stick – especially against Dakota Joshua – saved a goal for his team.

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In a few clips above, we saw Sherwood show off his speed by closing a sizable gap on Myers, but failing to gain possession of the puck. However, this time is even more impressive. Sherwood jumps on a slow pass from Hronek and deflects the puck out of the zone. With the momentum that he gains, he's able to beat the speedster Hughes to the loose puck and finds the open net to ice the game. This was Sherwood's only point of the series.

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Yeahhhh, I think I can see why the Canucks captain said Sherwood was so annoying to play against. On the opening shift of Game 3, Sherwood hit Hronek twice and knocked Hughes down with a double-team hit. Sherwood finished Game 3 with zero points or shots but had nine hits, proving that when he's not going to be a factor offensively, he'll be a vital part of the physical game.

Patrik Allvin had this to say after signing Sherwood on July 1st; "Our scouts have liked his ability to score goals, so I think he's a guy who can move up and down in the lineup. He's a guy who's really good on the PK but also has that shot for potentially our secondary powerplay."

It's interesting to hear Allvin talk about his shot, considering he's a fourth-liner. Typically, players with an elite shot would play higher in the lineup, right? Well, we finally get to see that shot on display in this clip:

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After a misread bank pass between Hughes and J.T. Miller, Sherwood steps into a one-time snapshot from the blue line. That shot comes quick enough for Silovs to mishandle it and nearly give up a juicy rebound to Michael McCarron at the front of the net. There certainly is potential in Sherwood's shot.

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It's not much later that we see Sherwood utilize his shot again. After using his speed to break away from his check at the opposing blue line, Sherwood catches up to his teammate and has a clear shot on Silovs. He rips a wrist shot from the high-slot area that clocked in at 87.1 MPH. Sherwood later shows his tenacity in the offensive zone, showing some great board play. Once he finds himself in a bit of trouble, he throws the puck in the dangerous area of the ice.

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Sherwood continues off his strong second period of Game 4 with an offensive shift. After carrying the puck through the zone to set up Cole Smith at the point for a shot, he sets up in the slot for a tip opportunity. However, Pius Suter strips McDonagh and goes on a partial breakaway. Sherwood notices that McDonagh has caught up to Suter, but there's a trailing Boeser wide open. So Sherwood uses his speed to catch up and perfectly times the stick lift on Boeser and, in one swift motion, picks up the puck for an easy transition the other way. What a play to save what would have been a Grade A scoring chance in the slot by a 40-goal scorer by Sherwood.

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Unlike above, Sherwood didn't immediately pressure the puck carrier on the penalty kill, except it worked to his advantage this time. He gets a stick in the passing lane to disrupt the cross-ice pass and turns on the jets for the loose puck. Sherwood wins that race and turns it into a shorthanded 2-on-1. Sherwood keeps the puck and rips his wicked shot that gets behind Silovs but doesn't find the back of the net. This was another great clip that showed off his penalty killing, speed and shot that Allvin spoke about after signing him.

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Here's an offensive zone shift where Sherwood uses speed and physicality to produce high-danger scoring chances for the Predators. He uses the boards to his advantage to get away from Zadorov and passes the puck around the boards to the point. Sherwood circles the top of the left-side circle and drives the net. After he doesn't receive the pass, he picks up the loose puck from being the net and sets up the next linemate crashing the net. Seeing this level of his cycle play, he looks like a prime replacement on the Dakota Joshua-Teddy Blueger-Conor Garland line if one of those three goes down.

However, if that does happen, Sherwood will need to apologize to Blueger after this massive blindside hit in Game 5.

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Oh, would you look at that: just another penalty kill shift where Sherwood uses his stick to tip the puck past the defender, uses his speed to zoom by him and create a 2-on-1, and uses his quick shot that rang off the post?

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This had to be one of the plays that led to Quinn Hughes saying that Sherwood was a piss-off to play against. He blocked his shot and then hacked and whacked him as he chased Hughes out of the zone at full speed.
<h1>Areas of Concern</h1>
Now, this isn't the worst thing in the world, and it's <em>definitely</em> something that Rick Tocchet can teach, but his positioning in the offensive zone here was puzzling.

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Don't get me wrong; he makes a great play to turn around and find the streaming forward along the wing for a shot attempt. But when Ryan McDonagh gets the puck at the point, Sherwood stands in no-mans-land, if not in the way of his teammate. If he skates towards the boards, it gives McDonagh options. Sherwood can be a passing option, or he opens a shooting lane for his defenceman. Again, this is something that can be fixed, but his offensive zone positioning could be better.

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This was at the end of a long shift, and you can really tell. At the beginning of the clip, you can already see Sherwood bent over. Once the play has left the zone, the puck pokes loose, and with very little urgency, Sherwood skates towards it with the defenceman laying off the play. But Sherwood's misplay of the puck leads to a turnover and springs Sam Lafferty on a breakaway. Sure, you can be tired, but to visibly put little effort into getting the puck, nearly costs his team a goal.

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It's just a lack of effort in this play, where he gets too cute with a puck retrieval that leads to an odd-man crush, followed by complete chaos in front of their own net. Instead of trying to kick the puck up with your back foot, stop up and use your stick to keep the puck in the zone. Defensive plays like this aren't going to go over well in a Rick Tocchet system.

<strong>Some things to highlight:</strong>

Whenever the Predators needed a spark, it was always Sherwood. Whether it was to start the game, a period, or after a goal, Brunette would always throw Sherwood's line out there just to bring that little spark of energy to his club.

Sherwood is not afraid to hit or tussle with the opposition's biggest and most intimidating players. On multiple occasions during this series, Sherwood would hit and get in the rough stuff after the whistle with Dakota Joshua and Nikita Zadorov.

As referenced through multiple clips above, Sherwood has miraculous speed. When he turns on the jets, he can burn past almost everybody. Canucks fans will likely see multiple breakaways and odd-man rushes from Sherwood. And while his shot speed is great, his shot accuracy may need some work if he wants to pick corners off the rush.

If you want more highlight reels from Kiefer Sherwood last season, check out this hype clip the Canucks Twitter posted earlier this summer.

https://twitter.com/Canucks/status/1807851899288445103

What do you think, Canucks fans? Are you excited about Kiefer Sherwood in a Canucks uniform next season?

<strong>Sponsored by bet365!</strong>
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