Welcome Matt: Hronek deserves a lot of credit for this Canucks turnaround too

Rick Tocchet and a healthy Thatcher Demko are getting much-deserved credit, but when looking for catalysts on this Vancouver Canucks turnaround, don’t sleep on Filip Hronek.

The defenceman is having a superior season, and is a major reason why Vancouver went from bottom-third club to best in the league. Approaching the one-year anniversary of his acquisition, it’s clear that that trade created a playoff-worthy defence corps and keyed the Canucks turnaround.

The 26-year-old sits tied for eighth in defenceman scoring with 41 points, and leads the league at +37. His 32 even-strength points are third in the league for defencemen, and he ranks in the top 30 in shots and time on ice.

He was a monster over the weekend against the Red Wings, his old team, and Washington. Three points in Motown, got banged up but kept battling in DC, then followed that up with two more points against Chicago on Tuesday.

Many eyebrows were raised when the Canucks surrendered first- and second-round picks to acquire Hronek on March 1 last year. The Bo Horvat trade, which procured the first-round pick sent to Detroit, was supposed to signal a rebuild.

Instead, Canucks management gambled they could fashion a quick turnaround and Hronek was the major piece of it. Don’t get me wrong, the bottom six, especially Teddy Blueger, and the veteran additions on the blue line were important too, but Hronek stands as the most important.

And minus that trade, we might be suffering through another losing season.

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