Canucks’ pay day on the way? Calls for change consume the hockey market

Article content

Someone must pay.

Article content

That’s a familiar refrain when a National Hockey League club doesn’t live up to expectations.

It typically occurs after an 82-game regular season, or even after the season, when the ownership determines that change within the hockey operations department is imperative and those decisions often affect the coaching staff. However, that process rarely solidifies before.

This is what happened here to Willie Desjardins, John Tortorella, Alain Vigneault and Marc Crawford.

On the other hand, junior bench chief Bill LaForge won a Western Hockey League title with Kamloops in 1984, but it lasted only 20 games with the Vancouver Canucks at the start of the following season.

His inability to adapt to the professional game and his politics and personalities resulted in a 4-14-2 record start and the arrival of Harry Neale to end a dismal 25-46-9 campaign. Tom Watt would be in charge of the bench the following season.

Article content

That’s why the current clamor for change in Vancouver after just 16 games is unbelievable, but understandable and relentless.

The Canucks are reeling amid a terrible 2-7-1 slump and a disturbing 5-9-2 record. They were outscored 19-6 on a three-game winless road trip and their fight for penalties has reached historic proportions as the least effective unit in the league.

Lack of execution and turnovers are more than worrisome and waning confidence has made Elias Pettersson a shadow of his once dominant Calder Trophy-winning presence.

What does this all mean?

Does owner Francesco Aquilini, buoyed by off-season acquisitions to tout his club as a playoff contender, suddenly ditch head coach Travis Green? Are you pointing the guilty finger at GM Jim Benning for roster construction? Or do you wait to see what the Canucks come up with in a three-game homestay with Travis Hamonic and Tucker Poolman returning to beef up a bleeding backside?

Article content

In response to a Monday request from Postmedia for an interview with Aquilini, the Canuckes said he was “traveling the United States at this time and was not available for comment.”

If patience is not a virtue, Aquilini should still do an examination of conscience before firing someone.

Did Green suddenly forget how to coach, or does the owner have a problem with the systems or the implementation or with the players on a professional and personal level? That is hard to imagine. This reporter asked Green on Sunday if he has enough players he can win with: scorers, playmakers, shot blockers, forecheckers and traffic disruptors.

“I think so,” he said. “We haven’t gotten the job done with certain parts of our game. Sometimes playing urgently is doing a little less and playing a little more direct with the puck. “

Article content

Canucks captain Bo Horvat said there is no division problem in the room and Green’s message does not fall on deaf ears.

“There is some frustration,” Horvat admitted. “But at the same time, we played a lot of hockey this year. Travis is putting systems in place and doing everything he has to do, it’s just a matter of us going out and doing it. “

If that doesn’t resonate with the property, there are options.

NEXT GAME

Wednesday

Colorado Avalanche vs. Vancouver Canucks

7 pm, Rogers Arena. TV: Sportsnet Pacific. Radio: AM 650

Teams that choose to replace a coach this early in a season take one of two tactics. It’s a belief that the club has playoff potential and needs to change the message, or that something is seriously wrong with the roster and the performance of the hockey operations department needs to be addressed in the off-season.

Article content

In that sense, an interim coach is usually a solution.

The Canucks hired assistant Brad Shaw in the offseason to give Green another voice of reason, especially with the departure of Newell Brown. Shaw didn’t get a chance to interview as Tortorella’s replacement in Columbus because he wasn’t hired by the NHL club.

The Blue Jackets featured the best penalty in the league in the 2018-19 season and Shaw was also instrumental in developing top-tier defenders.

“I know how I want players to play with habits and attention to detail,” Shaw told Postmedia. “We’re all in this together. It’s getting to a comfort level where you can speak your mind and, being totally honest, we’ll go further.

Article content

“Sometimes I have been told that I am too detailed or too finite. I have learned that simplicity is a really important aspect and that training for five years with Torts is as simple as possible. It has its trigger points. “

Is all this heartbreak the drip effect of the 2020 bubble team that caught lightning in a bottle?

The Canucks qualified for the postseason in point percentage and then dispatched the Minnesota Wild in the qualifying round before beating defending Stanley Cup champion St. Louis Blues and pushing the Vegas Golden Knights to seven games in pursuit. to advance to the final of the Western Conference.

Article content

The Canucks then struggled out of the gate last season and a host of injuries and a COVID-19 outbreak paralyzed the club mentally and physically. Loud voice outs in the room – Jacob Markstrom, Chris Tanev and Troy Stecher – and Tyler Toffoli were widely felt.

Fast forward and there is only one question to answer: Is this club good enough? If not, something has to give eventually.

And someone must pay.

[email protected]

twitter.com/benkuzma

The Canucks Report, powered by Province Sports, is essential reading for hockey fans who eat, sleep, Canucks, repeat. Sign up here .

CLICK HERE to report a typo.

Is there more to this story? We would like to hear from you about this or any other story that you think we should know about. Send an email to [email protected].