Vancouver Canucks at risk of not having a 50-point scorer for the first time ever
Just when you thought the Vancouver Canucks couldn’t possibly be worse, they find a way to come through.
As Vancouver’s horrific season crawls to a close, it appeared as though they’d at least have one player hit the 50-point mark.
Elias Pettersson recorded his 48th point of the season on April 2 against the Minnesota Wild. At that point, getting two points over the Canucks’ remaining seven games seemed more than doable.
But is anyone putting their faith in Pettersson these days?
The Canucks highest-paid forward has now gone three straight games without a point, leaving him with four games remaining to hit the 50-point mark.
If he doesn’t, it will go down as another dubious mark for the Canucks.
Throughout the Canucks’ 55-year history, they’ve never gone through a full season without having at least one player hit the 50-point mark.
Heck, even having a player fail to reach 60 points has been rare.
Over 52 seasons in which the Canucks have completed a full hockey campaign (including the 2019-20 season affected by COVID-19), there have been only five occasions when the club has failed to see a player reach 60 points.
During his Cy Young-worthy season in 1977-78, Ron Sedlbauer led the Canucks with 56 points, when he potted 40 goals. Defenceman Paul Reinhart then led Vancouver with 57 points in 1989-90.
The other seasons in which no Canucks player reached the 60-point mark were all more recent. Brock Boeser led the Canucks with 55 points during his rookie season in 2017-18. One year prior, Bo Horvat’s 52 points topped all Canucks players.
Vancouver’s closest call in terms of not having a player reach 50 points was back in 2013-14, when Henrik Sedin recorded 50 points exactly. He did so with a two-assist game during the season’s final contest.
Two Daniel Sedin goals helped Henrik crest 50 points for the Canucks in 2013-14. (Anne-Marie Sorvin/Imagn Images)
Pettersson could very well do the same before season’s end. Although having faith in a player who has two goals and 20 points in his last 32 games is a tough ask.
If Pettersson is unable to crest the 50-point plateau, the Canucks’ only other hopes rest with Filip Hronek and Brock Boeser,
Hronek is next on the Canucks roster with 46 points this season. He did have a four-game point streak snapped earlier this week when the Canucks lost to Vegas.
While no Canucks player has been a noteworthy threat, Boeser has led the team in goals and points since March 1. He has 45 points this season.
Vancouver is unsurprisingly last overall in goals scored (198), narrowly behind the Calgary Flames (199) and Chicago Blackhawks (201).