Another game, another loss for the Vancouver Canucks. The Canucks lossed their 4th consecutive pre-season game, 3-2 to the Calgary Flames. Despite the ugly record, the Canucks have more than a goose egg in the 'W' column to worry about...
Injuries are beginning to mount. Todd Bertuzzi has been sent home to Vancouver with a back problem, Markus Naslund missed last night's contest with a hip flexor and Mattias Ohlund is still having problems with his back. Anson Carter finally made his debut after battling a sore groin, Kevin Bieksa has yet to see action due to his ankle sprain and Jason Doig still has not played.
The Bertuzzi and Naslund injuries do not sound too serious, however the injuries on the blueline, in particular Mattias Ohlund, should be a major concern.
The State of Defense
Coming into training camp the defense was already extremely questionable. Without Ohlund the Canucks are in big trouble. Ohlund does not have a history of back problems, but anyone who has had trouble with their back knows that a back injury can be debilitating and slow to heal. Should the Canucks be without Ohlund for an extended period of time... well let's just say it could get ugly.
The battle for jobs on defense hasn't been much of a battle. Kevin Bieksa has not played, nor has Doig. Sven Butenschon has been, well Sven Butenschon. The only bright spots on the blueline have been Steve McCarthy, and a fired up Ed Jovanovski. The state of defense is so troubled that the Canucks are likely contemplating the idea of keeping Luc Bourdon around for the first 10 games of the season.
Dave Nonis needs to find more depth on defense.
Other Woes
The Canucks are now 0-14 in pre-season shootouts... the WCE has yet to score or even look good, although Brendan Morrison had a very good game against Calgary... Fedor Fedorov is quickly running out of time, Fedorov leads the team with a -5 in 3 games.
Some Positives
It's not all doom and gloom... Richard Park has looked great in the Canucks system, putting up 3pts and 11 shots in 3 games... Steve McCarthy has seen a lot of minutes and has made the most of them... Lee Goren is tied for the team lead with 4pts... Jovo is ready to go, 2 goals 2 assists and 9pims in 3 games... and finally, for the first time in a gazillion months, the Canucks will be on TV Saturday night!
1 comment:
I'll be updating the payroll by opening day, theres not much point in doing it until the roster is more or less set(although it is pretty out of date).
I will not be doing other teams payrolls, too much work to keep on top of it. You can find salaries on the nhlpa website and copy them to a spreadsheet if you're really into it :).
Thanks for the comments.
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