Canucks expectations and updated points prediction if no more moves

Team: 2023-24 Vancouver Canucks

Initial Creation Date: Jul. 19, 2023

Published: Jul. 19, 2023

Salary Cap Mode: Basic

Disclaimer: This is assuming no major injuries derail the season (Demko out for half the year), and is overall an optimistic prediction.

Canucks record: 42-32-8 92 points
5 in Pacific
Wild Card 2 (Depends on Winnipeg and Calgary)

Point predictions (82 game pace. Not everyone will play all 82 games):

Pettersson: 42G, 65A, 107P
Last year: 39G, 63A, 102P (80 games)
Explanation: I think Pettersson’s production is sustainable and will stay around the 100 point mark. Full year of Mikheyev will help keep the line dominant. If the Canucks actually make the playoffs, maybe Petey will get more Selke consideration

Kuzmenko: 32P, 40A, 72P
Last year: 39G, 35A, 74P (81 games)
Explanation: I think Kuzmenko’s goal totals will be a bit lower due to shooting % regression, but with Pettersson feeding him picks, I can’t see him falling off too hard

Mikheyev: 24G, 29A, 53P
Last year: 13G, 15A, 28 P (46 games)
Explanation: Full year without a torn ACL should allow him to be an even more effective contributor to this line. He put up similar PPG last season as my prediction. Hopefully also helps the PK out more

Miller: 30G, 48A, 78P
Last year: 32G, 50A, 82P (81 games)
Explanation: Don’t see his production falling off too hard if his linemates carry their weight. Production may drop a bit from not having Horvat’s lethal bumper shot on the PP

Boeser: 28G, 35A, 63P
Last year: 18G, 37A, 55P (74 games)
Explanation: really banking on a bounce back year. Hopefully his mind is in a better place and can focus on hockey more. Had actually good production last year but goal totals were lower than usual. I expect them to go up if he does bounce back. Would also like to see skating and defense be a priority though

Hoglander: 14G, 27A, 41P
Last year: 3G, 6A, 9P (25 games)
Explanation: probably the biggest wildcard. Hopefully he hits, but this is pretty optimistic. After a very good rookie season, his development has been rocky. Needs to stick or else he is probably traded

Blueger: 12G, 18A, 30P
Last year: 4G, 12A, 16P, (63 games)
Explanation: not expecting eye popping offensive numbers, but a bigger role could net him more points. Mostly expecting good defensive play and PK

Beauvillier: 21G, 18A, 39P
Laser year: 18G, 22A, 40P (82 games)
Explanation: I expect he might bounce around on different lines, sometimes finding himself with Petey. Seems like reasonable production which is on par with most of his career. I think he is capable of 20 goals. His production was night and day between New York and Vancouver. Assist totals may be down as there are no big goal scorers on his line most likely

Garland: 20G, 35A, 55P
Last year: 17G, 29A, 46P (81 games)
Explanation: After a dominant first season with the Canucks, Garland took a bit of a step back. Another slight wild card as I don’t even know if he will be on the team on opening night. He is very much capable of these point totals, but depends on how much he gets played. Also will help hopefully not getting glued to Sheldon Dries

Aman: 8G, 15A, 23P
Last year: 4G, 12A, 16P (68 games)
Explanation: when it comes to the fourth line, point totals aren’t the most important. As long as he forechecks well and cleans up defensively while chipping in some points from time to time, we should be satisfied

Joshua: 15G, 14A, 29P
Last year: 11G, 12A, 23P (79 games)
Explanation: Tocchet seems to like him a lot and wouldn’t be surprised to see him jump the lineup from time to time. Had pretty respectable point totals playing fourth line last season. Good forechecking and physicality is also even more important now that daddy Schenn is gone

Podkolzin: 13G, 20, 33P
Last season: 4G, 3A, 7P, (43 games)
Explanation: last season did not go to plan. Like Hogs, he has had a rough development path. He has extremely good work ethic though so I think he will definitely use last season as a lesson to get better. Hopefully he pushes for some top 9 minutes. This is a big wildcard

Hughes: 9G, 73A, 82P
Last year: 7G, 69A, 76P (78 games)
Explanation: Lack of Norris votes is criminal given how good Hughes has been. With improved defensive game, he should be acknowledged as one of the top d men in the league. He is only getting better. Getting to a PPG is a good goal to shoot for

Cole: 4G, 18A, 22P
Last year: 3G, 14A, 17P (78 games)
Explanation: Not expecting too much offense from him, but Hughes for Schenn to over 20 points so this is very possible. Mostly just need him to shut things down and on the PK

Soucy: 11G, 15A, 26P
Last year: 3G, 13A, 16P (78 games)
Explanation: Soucy will definitely be getting more minutes than he was getting in Seattle. With a bigger role likely calls for more production. Like cole, not caring too much about points, mostly looking for him to be solid defensively and ear PK minutes. I think he will make a good partner to let Hronek do his thing

Hronek: 15G, 38A, 53P
Last year: 9G, 30A, 39P (64 games)
Explanation: probably the player I’m most excited to see how they do. Had a monster season in Detroit. Won’t be the #1 guy here but will be able to control is own pair and eat up a lot of minutes. Canucks have pretty good forwards so I can definitely see him rack up quite a few points

Hirose: 5G, 14A, 19A
Last year: 0G, 3A, 3P (7 games)
Explanation: Another wild card. Really impressed me last season, but obviously was a small sample size. His poise and calmness with the puck made me question if him or Myers was the rookie on the pairing. Canucks desperately need some young players to step up

Myers: 3G, 10A, 13P
Last year: 1G, 16A, 17P (78 games)
Explanation: If he is still here in October, I just want him to not be a complete liability. He better not be playing 20 minutes a night. Not much expectation for him