{"id":597284,"date":"2026-04-11T15:34:15","date_gmt":"2026-04-11T15:34:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/597284\/"},"modified":"2026-04-11T15:34:15","modified_gmt":"2026-04-11T15:34:15","slug":"6-positives-from-a-dreadful-2025-26-canucks-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/597284\/","title":{"rendered":"6 positives from a dreadful 2025-26 Canucks season"},"content":{"rendered":"

You\u2019ve read enough about how poorly the 2025-26 NHL season has gone for the Vancouver Canucks<\/a>. After winning the Pacific Division just two seasons ago, the Canucks were right back into mediocrity this season, were forced to trade their captain, and entered into a long-overdue rebuild as a result.<\/p>\n

And that, of course, is just a summary. The list of negative things that happened to this team is much longer. It includes a litany of injuries, a record-low number of home ice wins, and more.<\/p>\n

But you\u2019ve read all those, and the sun was just\u00a0shining all week in Vancouver. That\u2019s why we thought it\u2019d be fitting to change gears a bit and go over six positives from what was an otherwise dreadful season for the Canucks.<\/p>\n

1. A practice facility appears to be in motionMany of the stories you will see in this piece come with a \u201cyeah, but,\u201d element to them. There are positives, but there\u2019s often more to it. A quick example \u2014 any player returned in the Quinn Hughes trade playing well is no doubt a positive, but it comes with the questions of why the Canucks had to trade Hughes in the first place<\/a> (although again, that\u2019s not what we\u2019re focusing on today).But this story? This one is all positive. When\u00a0CanucksArmy\u2019s\u00a0own Irfaan Gaffar broke the news<\/a> that the Canucks were nearing an agreement to build their practice facility at Britannia Rink, it was a big win for the organization for a few reasons. First and foremost, this practice facility story has basically become a meme over the years, as Jim Rutherford\u2019s non-updates every time he did a press conference quickly became routine. Second, it has the Canucks on their way to shed their title as the only NHL organization without a dedicated practice facility (something free agents absolutely ask about when deciding on where they should sign). Lastly, Britannia\u2019s proximity to Rogers Arena is another obvious positive when it comes to this story, as the Canucks looked at options all over the Lower Mainland but appear poised to land the one that undoubtedly made the most sense from a logistical perspective.2. The Canucks said the word rebuild and executed a perfect tank job<\/p>\n

Over the years, the Canucks haven\u2019t liked the word rebuild very much (just ask Mike Gillis and Trevor Linden!).<\/p>\n

But after the Hughes trade \u2014 okay, and after\u00a0they took the idea of \u201ca retool with a hybrid form\u201d out for a quick test drive after four wins immediately following the trade \u2014 the Canucks finally clarified their direction and told fans that yes, this was indeed a rebuild. Jim Rutherford also admitted that getting a high pick<\/a> in the 2026 Draft was a key part of their rebuild plan.Fans were right to be skeptical about the Canucks\u2019 willingness to actually tear things down, and can still be skeptical about it as we head into the offseason<\/a>. And while the Canucks didn\u2019t move off of pending UFAs Teddy Blueger and Evander Kane at the Trade Deadline, they\u00a0did\u00a0ship out Kiefer Sherwood for a solid return<\/a>, didn\u2019t wait around to see if Conor Garland would force his way out of Vancouver once his no-move clause kicked in this summer, and even convinced Tyler Myers to waive his no-trade clause so they could flip him to the Dallas Stars for a couple of draft picks.Those are all clear-cut rebuilding moves that further aided the Canucks in their effort to finish dead last<\/a>, a position they ended up locking up sooner than almost anyone could have expected. Of course, that also means they secured the best odds of any team at landing the first overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft, and at worst, they\u2019ll fall to third overall. The Canucks \u2014 well-known for their tank-ruining late-season pushes to sell hope and season tickets for the following season over the past decade \u2014 haven\u2019t drafted in the top three since 1999, when they selected Daniel and Henrik Sedin, so locking up a top-three draft selection is undoubtedly a positive for this team.3. Brock Boeser finished the year strong<\/p>\n

In the grand scheme of things, Brock Boeser scoring 20 goals and finishing at or near his career average of about 50 points per season, maybe doesn\u2019t matter all that much. After all, the Canucks are in 32nd place\u00a0with\u00a0that production, and wouldn\u2019t go any lower if Boeser put up 30 points.<\/p>\n

But whether you\u2019re of the opinion that the Canucks should look to trade Boeser at some point down the line or that they should keep him around for the duration of his new-ish contract, Boeser finishing the year strong is a good thing. Boeser seems to have real chemistry playing with Marco Rossi, and that\u2019s undoubtedly a good thing, as it was a real concern that Boeser wouldn\u2019t find a centre to play with after the Canucks traded JT Miller.<\/p>\n

Over his last 16 games, most of which he\u2019s played with Rossi as his centre, Boeser has put up nine of his 21 goals, and 10 of his 24 assists. Could a full season of playing with Rossi help Boeser get closer to the 40 goals and 73 points he put up back in 2023-24? That\u2019s at least a conversation thanks to Boeser\u2019s strong finish to the year.<\/p>\n

4. The pieces returned in the Hughes trade<\/p>\n

It feels like a cop out to add three individual bullet points for each player the Canucks got back in the Quinn Hughes trade, so we\u2019ll just group them all together. After returning from an injury \u2014 the second time \u2014 Marco Rossi has looked like a solid second line centre, and has breathed new life into the Canucks\u2019 power play. He\u2019s a big part of Boeser\u2019s strong finish to the year, and that\u2019s a net positive for the organization.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, youngsters Zeev Buium and Liam \u00d6hgren have both shown flashes at times. \u00d6hgren, who is nearly two years older than Buium, has been the more consistent player and with 18 points through 47 games, looks like he could be a solid middle-six winger for the Canucks for years to come. Not bad for a player who was thought to be more of a throw-in to the Quinn Hughes trades.<\/p>\n

For Buium, the fact that the Canucks fetched one of the game\u2019s elite defence prospects remains, even if he hasn\u2019t immediately stepped in and blown everyone away with his play. He doesn\u2019t turn 21 until December, and has plenty of time to grow into the player many people think he can be.<\/p>\n

5. Canucks targeted draft picks in their trades<\/p>\n

In the Hughes trade, it was Minnesota\u2019s first-round pick. But it was also the Kiefer Sherwood trade, where the Canucks got two second-round picks from the San Jose Sharks. For Conor Garland, the Blue Jackets coughed up a second and a third-round pick. In the Tyler Myers trade, the Canucks got Dallas to give them a second and a fourth.<\/p>\n

At this point, it\u2019s painfully obvious that what the Canucks really need is three or more game-breaking elite-level talents, typically found at or near the very top of the NHL Draft \u2014 a place the Canucks have seldom found themselves selecting at. In rare cases, those players are sometimes found later in the first round, and even rarer instances, in the second and third rounds as well. By targeting draft picks instead of taking flyers on B-level players that organizations are willing to trade away, the Canucks essentially stocked up on lottery tickets.<\/p>\n

The easiest way to explain this: it becomes a lot harder to draft a diamond in the rough like Brayden Point or Nikita Kucherov if you don\u2019t stock up on picks, and that\u2019s exactly what the Canucks have done. Now, will one of their lottery tickets hit? We\u2019ll have to wait and see, but the process is right, and given the long list of failed reclamation projects over the past decade that Canucks fans have had to endure, getting the process right is a great start.<\/p>\n

6. Filip Hronek took a step both on and off the ice<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve often said that Filip Hronek might be the only Canucks defenceman who took a step forward in Adam Foote\u2019s first season as head coach. Hronek is two points off tying his career high in points, and since the Quinn Hughes trade \u2014 and before, if we\u2019re being honest \u2014 the Canucks have relied on Hronek to play in all situations and log heavy minutes for them. He\u2019s been sensational for them all season, and that\u2019s just on the ice.<\/p>\n

Off the ice, Hronek has gotten plenty of credit for stepping up and being a real leader for the rebuilding Canucks. Hronek went to Max Sasson and other Abbotsford players to pick their brains on what made the culture in Abbotsford special enough to win a Calder Cup Championship last season. He\u2019s been publicly added to the short list of candidates to be the Canucks\u2019 next captain by Jim Rutherford. And whether you agree with that or not, there\u2019s no denying that Hronek has been a valuable resource for his young Canucks teammates, in particular Zeev Buium and Tom Willander, both of whom have spoken glowingly about what Hronek has done for them.<\/p>\n

What other positive from the Canucks\u2019 season did we miss? Let us know in the comments section below!<\/p>\n

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