If anyone had told me at the beginning of the National Hockey League season that we would be at a point in February where the likelihood of a Canadian team making the playoffs would seem remote, I would have laughed.
Montreal looked poised to compete for a top team in the east, and they started out looking the part, but an often injured Carey Price has shown the Canadiens are still a rather one-dimensional franchise, strong in net, and lacking in other facets of the game.
Vancouver which perennially seems to make the playoffs, were expected to stay in the picture this season, but the Sedin twins, (Daniel and Henrik), are showing their age, and without the talented pair at the level they have been, the Canucks are thin.
Calgary and Winnipeg both made the playoffs last year, although neither was really expected too. While I am a huge fan of both teams, and I truly wanted the success of last season to extend to this one, there was a realization there might well be a step back too, and that has clearly occurred.
The Flames relied on a surprising number of third period comebacks last year, and that was never likely to be repeated. Teams that lead going into the third simply win far more often than not in the NHL, to the point where comebacks are really a rare occurrence.
The Jets are still a team that is going through a build phase, much like Calgary and Edmonton, and that rebuild has shown cracks this season. Winnipeg gives up far too many goals in the first five-minutes of a game, and that hurts.
The Jets also take too many penalties, and of course that translates into giving up too many powerplay goals.
The early goals, and the goals against while short-handed have crashed the Jets into the depths of the standings among the also rans.
It hasn’t helped to have the distraction of star rearguard Dustin Byfuglien and team Captain Andrew Ladd in that state of limbo called the final year of a contract.
Teams can’t let assets just walk away at season’s end to explore the realm of free agency, so its ink a deal or get traded.
Credit the Jets with finally getting Byfuglien signed to a five-year extension. The big man contributes in a lot of ways, goals, hits and community, so it’s a key deal.
I like Ladd, but I just can’t see him a Jet after the big Byfuglien deal.
Ottawa really falls into the same category as the Flames and Jets, taking a step back this season, which should not come as a major surprise.
Then there is Toronto, long a dumpster fire. They have a new brain trust in place in terms of head coach, but Mike Babcock can’t score goals, or stop shots from behind the bench. There is still a huge rebuild ahead for the Maple Leafs and they are better off at the bottom of the league where a higher draft choice will come, than any false hope of making the playoffs.
Interesting the two Ontario teams pulled a major trade last week.
The big name was Dion Phaneuf going to the Sens, showing, I suppose, that Ottawa holds out hope to make the playoffs this year.
Phaneuf comes with a big contract, so the offload of salary for the Leafs is a great move, since the rearguard’s best days are behind him, and he will not be an integral element when, or maybe if, Toronto rebuilds to contention.
In Ottawa, if Phaneuf can lift them to a playoff spot, it’s a mirage win. Making the playoffs is of course a goal, but Phaneuf, or not, Ottawa is not a Cup contender, so taking on a big salary of a player with diminishing returns seems short-sighted.
The deal actually was a 10-player affair, which sounds very dramatic, but names such as Casey Vailey, Matt Frattin, and Colin Geening are not going to add a lot either way.
TO wins on the salary dump, and might be bigger winners if they can get more out of acquired d-man Jared Cowen and forward Milan Michalek who has missed games due to injury the last two seasons.
Not that repeated high craft choices have helped Edmonton. Connor McDavid may eventually get the Oilers into some level of contention, but the team still has questionable goaltending, are thin on defence, have limited winger toughness, and no history in terms of winning at the NHL in the line-up. That is a lot to overcome, and they frankly haven’t really taken a step forward again this season.
Edmonton will likely tinker, Justin Schultz often talked about since he is headed to free agency. A Schultz deal will be a minor one since his production has declined two straight seasons, and was even a healthy scratch recently.
Expect a bigger off season move when the Oiler brain trust makes its decision who is essential on a McDavid line. Those not on that trio will be dangled to fill blue line and goaltending holes, or at least they better be if the team expects to grow.
For teams trying to build, Winnipeg, Calgary, Toronto, Edmonton, another high draft choice will not be a bad asset to have, and long term are a good thing for each team.
Montreal has different issues. With Price they are a team which can contend in the regular season, but after P.K. Subban and Tomas Plekanec the team is thin in terms of scoring.
They need to make a move to add a top-five player to the fold, but that may mean trading the high draft pick for more immediate help this offseason.
Vancouver is the team that has perhaps the most difficult choices ahead. The best days of this edition of the team as it is seem behind them.
Ideally, you would trade the Sedin twins and begin a major retool, but Henrik and Daniel are going to want to finish their careers together, so a trade is near impossible. What team could give up the player and draft resources to get both Sedins, and then absorb the twins salary under the cap? Probably no one, and so retooling in Vancouver seems hamstrung from the outset.
I would expect the Canucks to move Radim Vrbata who will head to free agency at season’s end.
And there you have it, seven Canadian teams all having seasons that are less than stellar, and all quite likely to miss the playoffs.
Now NHL playoffs in May and June have a hard time holding my interest at any time. That is the time of spring fishing, disc golf and reading a good book in the sunshine at the park, but with no Canadian team to follow I’ll have tuned out NHL hockey the day the regular season ends, watching a few games the last week or two of the schedule just to prepare for an extended offseason.
I wish I could, but I see no dramatic surges to the playoffs among the seven this year, which will at least mean a spring unfettered by tuning in playoff games.
