In a Vancouver Canucks mailbag, THN writers discussed the team’s 0.208 points percentage through 12 games, attendance figures, and possible trade considerations.
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The Hockey News’ Vancouver Canucks Mailbag took up multiple questions about the team’s early-season performance, including what the writers described as a rough start and whether moves could be coming before key dates.
On attendance tracking, the mailbag explained that NHL attendance can be misleading because teams report tickets distributed rather than counting how many people enter the building. It said Vancouver is averaging 17,454 in attendance this season, described as 92.3% of capacity.
It compared that figure with Edmonton, stating the Oilers have a smaller arena and an average capacity percentage of 93.8%.
The mailbag also addressed trade-talk timing, saying “no” to the idea that Ryan Johnson would make another trade before Nov. 26, and adding that it “would not be surprised if another trade happens before the calendar flips to 2027.”
When asked who could be on the move, the mailbag named Paul Cotter, Drew O’Connor and Filip Chytil as possible players.
On points so far, the mailbag said Vancouver has a .208 points percentage through 12 games, attributing part of the low number to the team earning just one point over nine games. It said it is too early in the campaign to focus on points percentage because the number can swing if the team strings together wins.
It suggested improvement will take time as players learn Manny Malhotra’s system and said Vancouver will need its goaltenders to “steal some games” while keeping effort levels high, which it said has been the case most nights.
For the team’s early MVP conversation, the mailbag described a “three-player race” for Team MVP among Elias Pettersson, the forward, Elias Pettersson, the defenceman, and goaltender Leevi Meriläinen.
It said Elias Pettersson (the forward) is on a “point-per-game” pace, playing physically, and taking the most faceoffs on the team, and stated it would lean toward the forward as the Team MVP.
On goaltending, the mailbag said Meriläinen has been “sensational” this year and that it believes he has been giving the Canucks the best chance to end a losing streak. It also noted there are questions around Thatcher Demko’s future and Kevin Lankinen’s, while adding that it is hard to project what comes after this season.
Finally, the mailbag pointed to the “regression in Filip Hronek’s game” as what it called the most surprising element so far, while listing the play of Pettersson (the defenceman) as the main positive surprise.
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