Canucks path to Stanley Cup looks much scarier after trade deadline
The Vancouver Canucks had a quiet trade deadline as they made no transactions over the past few days. The same cannot be said for many of their Western Conference rivals.
The Canucks’ path to the Stanley Cup has gotten a lot more difficult on paper over the past 72 hours.
“We have tremendous respect for the other teams in our division, but nothing has really changed,” said GM Patrik Allvin today when asked about some of the additions made by rivals. “We know how hard we need to play to have success.”
While Allvin may not want to admit that things have changed, it’s hard to deny that other teams picked up strong contributors.
The Vegas Golden Knights were the most aggressive team at the deadline, adding Noah Hanifin, Anthony Mantha, and Tomas Hertl. That’s three impact players added to a team that won the Stanley Cup just last season.
The Golden Knights currently occupy the second Wild Card spot in the Western Conference. If the season were to end today, they would play the Canucks in the first round.
With Mark Stone and Hertl both expected to be out for a significant period on LTIR, the Golden Knights will likely struggle to move up in the standings. This means that they could be on a collision course to play one of the division winners in the first round.
While the Nevada-based team made the splashiest moves at this year’s deadline, numerous other Western Conference teams also made significant upgrades.
The Edmonton Oilers acquired Adam Henrique, Sam Carrick, and Troy Stetcher. While they may not have made the huge acquisition that some fans were hoping for, these pickups add depth to a team that already oozes more than enough high-end talent.
The Winnipeg Jets, the second-best team in Canada by the standings right now, took a similar approach to the Canucks in that they made a trade for Sean Monahan well in advance of the deadline.
However, the Jets did not stop there. They also acquired Tyler Toffoli today, adding a legitimate top-six scorer to one of the very best defensive teams.
The Jets were joined by their Central Division rivals the Colorado Avalanche as teams that made significant moves ahead of the deadline. The team that already boasts superstars such as Cale Makar and Nathan Mackinnon, and who won the Stanley Cup just two seasons ago, improved its roster further.
The Avalanche acquired defenceman Sean Walker who has been enjoying a great season for the Philadelphia Flyers and then also added superb playmaker Casey Middlestat to play down the middle.
All in all, the path through the Western Conference is looking much more difficult for the Canucks than it did even a week ago. Will the team’s caution at this year’s deadline come back to haunt them later this spring? Only time will tell.