NHL.com is providing in-depth roster, prospect and fantasy analysis for each of its 32 teams from Aug. 1-Sept. 1. Today, the Vancouver Canucks.<\/p>\n
The Vancouver Canucks are eager to prove last season\u2019s disappointing step back was just an exception by quickly returning to the promise shown two seasons ago.<\/p>\n
With few roster upgrades so far, Vancouver is counting on a return to form from top center Elias Pettersson<\/a>, a return to health for No.1 goalie Thatcher Demko<\/a>, a defense general manager Patrik Allvin believes is top five in the NHL, and a consistent message by promoting first-year head coach Adam Foote to accomplish that bounce-back.<\/p>\n Forward Evander Kane<\/a>, acquired from the Edmonton Oilers in a June 25 trade, is the only big addition this offseason, leaving the Canucks short of their stated intent to upgrade at center after trading J.T. Miller<\/a> to the New York Rangers on Jan. 31. But the last-minute decision by forward Brock Boeser<\/a> to re-sign July 1 rather than leave as an unrestricted free agent, and contract extensions for forward Conor Garland<\/a> and Demko, at least ensures the return of a core group determined to prove they are better than last season showed.<\/p>\n \u201cLast year, I think, carries a lot of noise that isn’t as warranted,\u201d Garland said after signing a six-year, $36 million contract that begins in 2026-27. \u201cWe dealt with injuries right from the start. \u2026 We had a lot of top players hurt. I think we’re a pretty good hockey club. We\u2019ve got a really good coaching staff, we have some really good pieces coming back, and I think the noise is a lot louder than what we feel in the room, so we’re a confident group.\u201d<\/p>\n Garland listed off injuries to Boeser (concussion), top-pair defenseman Filip Hronek<\/a> (shoulder), and Demko (knee), whose season didn\u2019t start until Dec. 10 and was twice more interrupted by injuries. There were also late season injuries to Pettersson (oblique) and center Filip Chytil<\/a> (concussion), since-traded forward Dakota Joshua<\/a> missed the first month recovering from surgery for cancer, and No. 1 defenseman Quinn Hughes<\/a> missed 14 games with lower-body injuries he struggled trying to play through for long stretches.<\/p>\n Despite those injuries and \u201cthe noise\u201d surrounding a rift between Pettersson and Miller that led to the latter\u2019s trade, the Canucks finished 38-30-14 last season, well off the pace that saw them win the Pacific Division in 2023-24, but as Garland stressed, still just six points behind the St. Louis Blues for the second wild card in the Western Conference.<\/p>\n \u201cWe overcome a lot of adversity,\u201d Garland said.<\/p>\n It continued in the offseason when Rick Tocchet chose to leave on April 29, less than a year after being voted the Jack Adams Award winner as NHL coach of the year, before signing with the Philadelphia Flyers on May 14. Foote was named the new Canucks coach that same day after spending the past three seasons as an assistant under Tocchet and wasted little time meeting with the leadership group and building belief in what\u2019s to come.<\/p>\n “I have so much faith in our team and the pieces that we have, and Adam Foote too,\u201d Boeser said after signing a seven-year, $50.75 million contract July 1. \u201cLook at our \u2018D\u2019 core and the goalies, it’s so good. Everyone talks about the centers and getting another center, but us forwards know we need to be better.\u201d<\/p>\n