What to expect from new Canucks defenceman Cameron Crotty
Fans likely won’t have to wait long to see the Vancouver Canucks’ newest player in action.
The Canucks plucked defenceman Cameron Crotty off waivers on Tuesday, concurrent with sending Victor Mancini down to the Abbotsford Canucks in the AHL to make room on the roster.
On Thursday, the 27-year-old defenceman was paired with Jamie Oleksiak for his first practice with the Canucks, which could be a pairing fans see on Friday night when the Canucks face the New York Rangers.
That would be a sizeable pairing, with the 6’3″ Crotty joining the 6’7″ Oleksiak.
‘We’ve got to make sure we put him in a good spot’
Head coach Manny Malhotra, who has kept his lineup cards close to his chest this season, was tight-lipped about whether Crotty would face the Rangers.
“You obviously want to see what you have available,” said Malhotra. “But we’ve got to make sure we put him in a good spot to make sure he feels comfortable within the system and within the room.”
It may depend on whether Tom Willander, who skated at practice on a pairing with Elias Pettersson, is ready to play after missing four games with a lower-body injury. Even if Willander is available, however, the right-shot Crotty could slot into the lineup ahead of Luke Schenn, who played just 8:17 against the Philadelphia Flyers on Monday.
Whether or not Crotty plays on Friday, Malhotra praised the long-time pro for how he adapted to a new environment.
“He did a good job of executing and picking up on the drills quite quickly,” said Malhotra. “It’s always a task to come to a new team and follow a different set of drills and the cadence of practice, but he did a great job following along.”
‘Meat and potatoes hockey’
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After practice, Crotty spoke to the Vancouver media sporting a bushy biker moustache, which he quickly clarified is for Movember and is “not my typical look.”
Crotty has played just 11 games in the NHL — nine with the Ottawa Senators and one each with the Arizona Coyotes and Minnesota Wild — but has played 332 games in the AHL.
Coming to a new team, Crotty emphasized the importance of keeping things simple and just playing his game. When asked what exactly his game is, he chuckled.
“Meat and potatoes hockey,” said Crotty. “Just simple, defensive side of the puck. I’m not here to score goals and stuff like that, but just a simple, steady game and being hard to play against.”
The Canucks could certainly use a dose of being hard to play against. They’ve given up the most goals in the NHL by a wide margin, averaging 4.5 goals against per game.
Crotty isn’t worrying too much about how the Canucks have performed so far this season, especially as a player who has yet to stick in the NHL.
“For me, it’s another opportunity in this league,” said Crotty. “Obviously, the record is what it is, but my approach is going to be the exact same, regardless of the record: come in and be the best player and best teammate that I can be.”
Crotty fits one criterion general manager Ryan Johnson likes: he’s worn a letter on his chest. Crotty was the captain of the AHL’s Iowa Wild during the 2024-25 season. Two of his alternate captains that season were former Canucks: Brendan Gaunce and Travis Boyd.
Crotty could help Canucks’ decrepit penalty kill
Senators fans largely describe Crotty as a decent seventh defenceman, able to step into the lineup and provide reliable minutes defensively, no matter how much time he spends in the press box.
That description seems to line up with the numbers. While the sample size for Crotty in the NHL is very small, he’s been effective defensively in a limited role.
Crotty played just three games for the Senators this season, but it’s worth noting that he was the only Senators player who hasn’t been on the ice for a single goal against, whether at even strength or on the penalty kill.
Last season — again, in a very, very small sample size — Crotty wasn’t on the ice for a single goal against while on the penalty kill. That’s nine games, with a decent amount of usage shorthanded, without a goal against.
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Crotty’s work on special teams might be of special interest to the Canucks, who have massively struggled on the penalty kill this season. Their 63.1% penalty kill is the worst in the NHL and on pace to be the worst in NHL history.
‘It starts with something as simple as a clean breakout’
At 5-on-5, Crotty carried a 58.6% expected goals percentage in his six games with the Senators last season, and was leading all Senators defencemen with a 68.7% expected goals percentage through three games this season.
Those numbers should be taken with a grain of salt given his limited usage on a sheltered bottom pairing, but the key is that Crotty held his own in the defensive zone and helped move the puck up the ice.
That’s all Malhotra is looking for from his defence, as his team has frequently been stuck in the defensive zone this season.
“It starts with something as simple as a clean breakout,” said Malhotra. “There’s been a number of times where we get caught in our zone on extended shifts, and that tends to change the momentum of a game quite badly.”
While Crotty may not provide much at all offensively — his career high in points at the professional level is 13 points in 55 games — he could potentially help the Canucks with some basic, meat-and-potatoes defensive hockey.