{"id":266650,"date":"2025-11-07T00:35:08","date_gmt":"2025-11-07T00:35:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/266650\/"},"modified":"2025-11-07T00:35:08","modified_gmt":"2025-11-07T00:35:08","slug":"analytics-suggest-the-vancouver-canucks-are-the-nhls-worst-team","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/266650\/","title":{"rendered":"Analytics suggest the Vancouver Canucks are the NHL’s worst team"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Adam Foote era is off to a rough start<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Just 15 games into the season, there\u2019s been nothing to dispel the notion that the Vancouver Canucks are going to be better this season.<\/p>\n

If anything, the numbers suggest that they\u2019re actually worse.<\/p>\n

Heading into the season, the concern was that the Canucks would struggle to score goals and create offence.<\/p>\n

That fear has been validated. Vancouver currently ranks 23rd overall in shots per game and 27th in actual goals scored.<\/p>\n

Inept offence from the Canucks isn\u2019t a surprise, but a leaky defence? That wasn\u2019t supposed to happen.<\/p>\n

So far this season, Vancouver has allowed the third-most scoring chances in the entire league at 5-on-5. Only the Edmonton Oilers and Chicago Blackhawks have been more permissive.<\/p>\n

The heroics of Thatcher Demko have only helped so much<\/a>, as Vancouver has allowed the seventh-most goals in the league.<\/p>\n

So, they\u2019re below average offensively, and their defensive performance has been ghastly. That\u2019s led the Canucks to having the worst expected goals-for total in the entire NHL at even-strength.<\/p>\n

\"Canucks<\/p>\n

The Canucks are at the bottom of the NHL in terms of expected goals percentage. (Advanced Hockey Stats)<\/p>\n

A top-three of Quinn Hughes, Filip Hronek and Marcus Pettersson was supposed to give the Canucks an edge on defence.<\/p>\n

So, what gives?<\/p>\n

Vancouver\u2019s struggles to generate much in the offensive zone invite the other team to counter with their own attack, so that doesn\u2019t help Vancouver\u2019s possession numbers.<\/p>\n

However, some of their key defenders have taken a step back from last year.<\/p>\n

Hughes has been a rock defensively for the Canucks, especially over the last two seasons. This year, however, he\u2019s been on the ice for 3.2 expected goals against per-60. That\u2019s the worst mark on the team aside from Evander Kane and Victor Mancini.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not just Hughes, though. Aside from Marcus Pettersson, every Canucks defender has taken a notable step back defensively. Forwards like Jake DeBrusk and newcomer Lukas Reichel have also been shelled in terms of possession metrics.<\/p>\n

The only Canucks who have an expected goals above 50 per cent this season are Tom Willander and Filip Chytil.<\/p>\n

Those are all from the publicly available numbers. According to JFresh<\/a>, the private analytic models think the Canucks are even worse.<\/p>\n

A quick look at all situations xGoals differential in the SportLogiq vs. TopDown model. <\/p>\n

Common for there to be a decent bit of deviation early on, esp thanks to special teams.<\/p>\n

Biggest takeaway is that public models think the Canucks are bad, but SL thinks they’re BAD bad pic.twitter.com\/5v3roEE7XE<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 JFresh (@JFreshHockey) November 3, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

All of this suggests that the Canucks are relatively fortunate to have a 7-8 record. That good fortune currently has them 26th overall in the NHL standings.<\/p>\n