After 21 games of the 2009-2010 season, the Canucks are sitting in 10th in the Western Conference with a record of 11-10-0. Some would say that the Canucks could be satisfied with that record considering their injury situation, although the Canucks are not the only team in the NHL battling the injury bug.At the 21 game mark of the NHL Regular Season, here is the Quarter Pole Report Card:
Defense:
Alexander Edler - 0G, 10A - 10Pts/-5
The young swedish blueliner has yet to find his stride this season. His inconsistent play has lead to a number of nights when you're left wondering if GM Mike Gillis' only regret of his tenure in Vancouver could be his arguable premature signing of Alex Edler to a nice raise. Edler has started to play better in recent outings, looking like he has more confidence and is cutting down on the turnovers, but he needs consistency in his game and to be more responsible in his own end before he gets a better grade.
Grade: C
Kevin Bieksa - 1G, 10A - 11Pts/-1
When Bieksa first entered the league and showed a gritty, hard-nosed, physical game he quickly became a fan favorite. That Kevin Bieksa has been hard to find in recent years, especially this season. We've seen spurts of it, as he's dropped the gloves on a few occasions to stick up for teammates, but too often we are seeing Bieksa not playing with enough energy or emotion. He also has a terrible time in own end some nights and doesn't exactly fill fans with confidence when he is handling the puck in his own zone. Bieksa hasn't scored a goal since the first game of the season, not being able to get his shots through from the point could be a big reason for that.
Grade: C
Sami Salo - 0G, 2A - 2Pts/-1
Widely considered the Canucks best defender (when in the lineup) he can definitely be a force when on his game and controlling the play in the Canucks end(when in the lineup). Salo has been a tale of two different players this year, in his own end, he has been one of the better Canucks blueliners defensively (when in the lineup) but offensively and on the Power Play, Salo has not been able to contribute enough. With no goals and just 2 points in 14 games, Salo needs to start shooting the puck more, especially with the man advantage. The Canucks need his great first pass and his booming shot to show up soon.
Grade: C+
Willie Mitchell - 2G, 5A - 7Pts/+3
The Canucks best and most consistent defenseman so far this season has to be Willie Mitchell. Not only has he been effective on the Penalty Kill and against the opposing teams best players, but he's also contributed offensively more than usual. Mitchell stepped up and played some of his best and most responsible hockey when captain Roberto Luongo went down with a rib injury, helping Andrew Raycroft and Cory Schneider to some solid outings.
Grade: B+
Christian Ehrhoff - 3G, 9A - 12Pts/+9
Christian Ehrhoff is battling Mikael Samuelsson for the title of best newly acquired Canuck. Ehrhoff has looked poised with the puck and has made an impact on the score sheet often this season. He is a team leading +9 and has been as good defensively as he has been offensively. Despite a couple of nights when the entire Canucks squad pulled a no show, Ehrhoff has been more than a pleasant surprise.
Grade: B+
Shane O'Brien - 0G, 0A - 0Pts/+3
The rough and tough O'Brien has had to fight to keep his spot in the lineup on most nights for the Canucks. With the addition of Mathieu Schneider and Aaron Rome solidifying a roster spot in training camp, O'Brien has had to stay steady in the defensive zone to make sure he stays out of the press box. For the most part, O'Brien has been pretty hard to notice in his own end this year, which is probably a good thing for his chances of keeping a spot in the lineup. He's been solid defensively and has stood up for his teammates a few nights this season too.
Grade: C+
Mathieu Schneider - 2G, 1A - 3Pts/-4
The veteran blueliner missed the first batch of games with injuries - and it showed in his first few outings. Schneider looked slow and easy to fight off the puck in the early going, but in the past few games he's looked more calm and accustomed to the Canucks system. Offensively, he's put up 3Pts in 8 games and a Power Play goal. Schneider seems to be getting better and making better plays with the puck with each passing game.
Grade: C+
Aaron Rome - 0G, 1A - 1Pts/-4
After a pretty impressive Preseason earned him the number 7 spot on the Canucks blueline, Rome has looked out of place when in the Canucks lineup. He has had trouble filling in spot duty on the back end and is surprisingly only a -4. The Canucks are healthy right now on the blueline, so don't expect to see too much of Aaron Rome barring injuries.
Grade: C-
Forwards:
Henrik Sedin - 12G, 11A - 23Pts/+1
The Canucks leading scorer has been consistently contributing offensively despite having more than a few different line mates this season. With Daniel suffering from a broken bone in his foot for 6 weeks, Henrik has been playing with Ryan Kesler, Mason Raymond, Mikael Samuelsson, Alex Burrows, Steve Bernier, Michael Grabner and even Tanner Glass at times this season. Being a 6 million dollar player, it doesn't matter who you're playing with, you need to put up points, and Henrik has done that pretty well in his brother's absence. There have been a few games when Henrik has looked slow and behind the play, but for the most part this season, his production has been there.
Grade: B+
Daniel Sedin - 0G, 4A - 4Pts/E
Since he's only played 4 games this season, we can't really give him a grade. At the moment, the Canucks just want him back in the lineup.
Grade: N/A
Mikael Samuelsson - 8G, 7A - 15Pts/-2
The former Red Wing has been a welcome addition to the Canucks lineup. When Daniel Sedin went down with a foot injury for 6 weeks, Samuelsson chipped in offensively and is now up to 8 goals on the year with 2 of them being game winners. Samuelsson has been bounced back and forth between the top two lines but has remained quite consistent with his play. He seemed to have most of his chemistry with Ryan Kesler and Michael Grabner, a combination that may be reunited when Grabner is back from an ankle injury.
Grade: B
Alex Burrows - 4G, 8A - 12Pts/+1
The feisty, agitating Alex Burrows we're used to seeing has been absent for the 2009-2010 season. He started off well offensively, but has cooled down considerably in the past 6 - 8 games. Questions were circling as to whether Burrows was 100% healthy, and it is now being reported that Burrows suffered a groin injury after a check from Drew Doughty in October. Burrows has not been the player that Canucks fans have come to love in recent years, and his injury has explained why he has not been involved in scrums, drawing penalties, and taking opposing players off their game. Hopefully with his groin injury behind him and Daniel Sedin's return imminent, Burrows can regain his form.
Grade: C
Ryan Kesler - 5G, 14A - 19Pts/E
The Canucks most valuable player from last season has picked up where he left off. Ryan Kesler has been the Canucks most all around player through 21 games this year. Defensively, he has been a force on the Penalty Kill and against the oppositions top line, and offensively he has found chemistry with fellow speedster Mason Raymond. Kesler is probably the Canucks most important forward, as he goes, the Canucks go it seems. His ability to increase the tempo of his linemates and a solid work ethic makes him a leader on this team.
Grade: A-
Mason Raymond - 8G, 5A - 13Pts/+1
Mike Gillis said last year that Ryan Kesler and Alex Burrows stepping up to be consistent offensive contributors was critical to his team's success. Gillis stated before the season started that he needed new players to take the next step and be consistent offensive producers at an NHL level, Mason Raymond is doing his best to be one of those players. The young forward can flat out fly, he has been all over the ice at times this season and is finally starting to finish his chances. Raymond's ability to go straight to the net with speed frees up his linemates and can lead to a lot of rebound opportunities. So far this season, Raymond has been a big factor in the teams 11 wins.
Grade: B+
Steve Bernier - 6G, 4A - 10Pts/-5
It's been a mixed year for Steve Bernier. After losing 15 lbs in the offseason in hopes of improving his conditioning, the Canuck forward has started off relatively well offensively. His goal total is definitely a positive for the Canucks but his physical play has been lacking. Bernier was among the Canucks most physical and gritty forwards last year, this season has been different though. Bernier needs to start finishing more of his checks, his offensive game would improve even more if he was more noticeable on the forecheck. Overall though, with the amount of injuries the Canucks have had this season up front, Bernier's 6 goals have been a big help.
Grade: C+
Kyle Wellwood - 0G, 1A - 1Pts/+1
One of the biggest, if not the biggest disappointment this season has to be the play and production of Kyle Wellwood. Coming off an inspiring performance in the playoffs last year, many expected Wellwood to be a solid contributor for the Canucks. The argument going around defending Wellwood is his lack of quality linemates this season, Tanner Glass has been a mainstay alongside Wellwood this year. Although, he has also had his fair share of Power Play time and hasn't garnered any results. Wellwood is dangerously close to losing his roster spot and needs to start shooting the puck more. Time and time again he passes when he is in prime scoring position.
Grade: F
Tanner Glass - 2G, 1A - 3Pts/+3
Glass scratched and clawed his way onto this Canucks team with his solid effort in training camp and an unfortunate injury through training camp to Jannik Hansen. Although at times you wonder if Glass is an NHL calibre player, his work ethic and defensive responsibility has kept him in Alain Vigneault's good books. Once the Canucks are healthy though, it remains to be seen whether Glass will still be in the lineup.
Grade: C
Rick Rypien - 2G, 1A - 3Pts/-2
Even though he deserves an A for staying healthy for the bulk of this season so far, Rypien has been an effective 4th liner for the Canucks and has replaced Darcy Hordichuk as the Canucks most frequent fighter. Rypien has continued to finish his checks but unfortunately has been part of the Canucks 4th line that has been consistently outplayed by the opposing teams 4th line on far too many nights. It may not all be Rypien's fault, and he probably has been the best 4th liner this season for the Canucks, but since he's on the line, he takes some of the blame.
Grade: C+
Ryan Johnson - 0G, 4A - 4Pts/+3
A slow start to the season really hurt Ryan Johnson and the Canucks fourth line. Johnson's specialty is supposed to be the Penalty Kill which struggled to start the year. He suffered a pretty horrific crash into the boards but returned to the lineup soon after, thankfully not seriously hurt. Johnson's play has been indifferent, don't let his 4 assists fool you, 3 of those came in 1 game in the Canucks 8 - 2 rout of the Avalanche.
Grade: D
Darcy Hordichuk - 1G, 1A - 2Pts/E
Skating has been a really big problem for Hordichuk this year, he has been badly outplayed by opposing team's enforcers for most of the season and is usually spending his entire shift in the defensive zone chasing the puck. Not only is he not playing well, he doesn't seem to drop the gloves when necessary for the Canucks. There have been times this season when the Canucks have needed some energy or a game changing shift, Hordichuk has rarely been the player to provide that this year. Basically, when your coach would rather dress two defensemen as forwards over you, I think the writing's on the wall that your game isn't up to snuff.
Grade: D-
Michael Grabner - 2G, 3A - 5Pts/-1
It was a tough training camp for Grabner who was sent back to Manitoba after a disappointing string of exhibition games. After being sent back to the Moose, Grabner turned his game up a notch, he was Manitoba's most dynamic forward for a stretch of games and when Daniel Sedin got hurt, Michael Grabner was given an opportunity to make an impact at the NHL level. Grabner's speed and shot are his bread and butter, although he wasn't quick enough to get away from the injury bug. Grabner suffered a tough luck injury playing soccer with his teammates before a game and is expected to stick with the big club when he returns. He (finally) showed the potential to be a 20 - 30 goal scorer at the NHL level.
Grade: B-
Goaltending:
Andrew Raycroft - 2.18, 4 - 2, .916%
A solid preseason won Andrew Raycroft a spot with the big club and a front row seat for 70+ games of watching Roberto Luongo stop the puck - or so he thought. Luongo went down with a rib injury and Raycroft was thrust into action and played fairly well. He was calm and poised in the crease and made few mistakes. The Canucks tightened up defensively to help Raycroft who was he was more than solid when counted upon. Despite a few tough outings (namely St. Louis and Anaheim) when his teammates abandoned him in goal, Raycroft has been impressive and reliable as a backup.
Grade: B
Roberto Luongo - 2.69, 7 - 7, .906%
The numbers are not very Roberto Luongo like, but the Canucks captain has started to show signs of rounding back in to form after coming off a fractured rib injury that sidelined the netminder for 2 weeks. Luongo got off to his typical and on schedule slow start in October, and just as he was beginning to turn the corner, he got hurt. Now that he's back and has had an extra week to rest with this odd break in the schedule, Roberto should be re-charged and eager to start stringing wins together. With the Team Canada Olympic announcement just over a month away, expect Luongo to start ratcheting it up. So far, he's been above average, but that's not good enough for the Canucks leader, best player, and highest paid player.
Grade: C+
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