SportsHockeyCanucks

7 candidates to play on Canucks' top line with Pettersson and Kuzmenko

Trevor Beggs
Trevor Beggs
|
Sep 19 2023, 9:35 pm
7 candidates to play on Canucks' top line with Pettersson and Kuzmenko
Bob Frid-USA TODAY Sports

Riding shotgun with Elias Pettersson and Andrei Kuzmenko has to be one of the best jobs in hockey. Last season, the Vancouver Canucks duo set the NHL ablaze.

Pettersson and Kuzmenko scored 4.2 goals per 60 when they were on the ice together last season at even strength. In other words, they produced at least one goal for every 15 minutes they played together at five-on-five.

Unsurprisingly, both players were top-11 in terms of even-strength points per 60 last season.

Canucks Pettersson Kuzmenko points per 60

NaturalStatTrick.com

As the Canucks get set to start training camp in Victoria on Thursday, there seems to be an opening on the top line for one lucky winger on this roster.

Here are seven candidates who could play with Pettersson and Kuzmenko.

1. Ilya Mikheyev

Let’s start with the frontrunner for one of hockey’s rosiest jobs.

When he was in the lineup last season, Ilya Mikheyev spent most of his time playing on the Canucks’ top line. He produced as well, posting 12 goals and 25 points at even strength in just 46 games.

He’s a safe option, but the Canucks could bolster their top line further by going in a different direction.

Pettersson and Kuzmenko had an expected goals-for percentage of 60.4% on their own last season. Mikheyev brought down that average, as the Canucks’ expected goals-for percentage with that trio on the ice dropped to 52.3%

2. Anthony Beauvillier

Following the Bo Horvat trade, Anthony Beauvillier immediately made an impact when slotted in on the Canucks’ top line. He started hot, posting seven goals and 16 points in his first 18 games in Vancouver.

However, Beauvillier’s production tailed off and he ended last season playing on a different line.

3. Brock Boeser

Remember when Pettersson and Brock Boeser were on track to be one of the NHL’s best forward duos?

That seems like ages ago, because the last time Pettersson and Boeser played together for a sustained period of time was back in 2019-20.

If the Canucks want to make some serious noise this season, they’ll likely need Boeser to have a top-line impact next season.

What better way to get a top-line impact out of Boeser then to, you know, put him on the top line?

4. Conor Garland

Conor Garland has quietly been very efficient at even strength since joining the Canucks.

However, most of that efficiency has come while playing on a separate line from Pettersson.

Aside from a brief stint early in the Bruce Boudreau era, Garland and Pettersson have largely been kept apart.

Based on Garland’s skill set, he should be considered a top-line winger option.

5. Dakota Joshua

Although he’s certainly not the frontrunner for top-line duties, Dakota Joshua did finish last season playing alongside Pettersson and Kuzmenko at even strength.

One thing Joshua brings that these other candidates lack is a physical presence. The Canucks lack big bodies up front, and Joshua was one of their most physical players last season.

He also got better as last season went on, with Tocchet claiming that he thinks Joshua can score 20 goals in one NHL season.

Tocchet might be right, as long as Joshua gets some extended time playing on the Canucks’ top line.

6. Nils Höglander

Simply put, Nils Höglander has enough skill to play on the Canucks top line.

But will he even make the team out of camp?

Höglander’s progression has gone a bit sideways since making the Canucks out of camp prior to the 2020-21 season. Last year, he spent the majority of the season down in the AHL with the Abbotsford Canucks.

He did impress in the AHL and was arguably the Abbotsford Canucks’ best skater during their playoff run.

Höglander and Pettersson are also good friends, but it’ll take more than that for the 5-foot-9 forward to get a shot on the top line. He’ll have to be one of the standout forwards from Canucks training camp.

7. Vasily Podkolzin

Much like Höglander, Podkolzin will have to have a monster training camp if he wants to have a prominent spot in the opening night lineup.

However, he has tools that seem tailor-made for the top line.

Podkolzin flashed an impressive 200-foot game as a rookie in 2021-22. Mikheyev boasts a similar skillset, which is a primary reason why he spent the most time with Pettersson and Kuzmenko last season.

However, you could argue that Podkolzin has more untapped offensive potential than Mikheyev.

Th2 22-year-old can also bring a physical presence, which Tocchet clearly values considering he gave Joshua a shot on the top line last season.

While Podkolzin is a long shot to start the season on the top line, he’s arguably the best stylistic fit if he can put it all together.

ADVERTISEMENT