As great as it has been to see the Canucks win three straight games to start the season, there’s no denying that they’ve been winning by the skin of their teeth. All three wins have come past regulation and they have yet to hold a lead for even one second. It’s fair to suggest that the Canucks have gotten pretty dang lucky.
The thing is, you have to put yourself in a good position in order for luck to have any effect. It wouldn’t have mattered if the Canucks got a goal in the final few minutes against the St. Louis Blues if they had been down by more than one goal. Thus far, the Canucks have done a remarkable job keeping games close, mainly because they’ve been remarkably solid defensively.
The 25 shots on goal they gave up to the Blues are the most they’ve allowed in their three games and, while it’s early yet, they’re giving up the second fewest shots per game, with only the Washington Capitals bettering them.
Even when the Canucks went down by three goals to the Hurricanes, they shut the door in the third period, allowing just five shots on goal, giving them a chance to make the comeback. Heck, they didn’t actually allow the Calgary Flames to score a goal in the first game of the season; Loui Eriksson scored their goal for them.
When you look at total shot attempts (corsi) instead of just shots on goal, the Canucks have been dominant defensively. The Canucks have the lowest corsi against per 60 minutes at even-strength and it’s not even close. The have a 39.28 CA/60; the next best team, the Capitals, is at 46.55 CA/60.
Now, there are plenty of caveats to mention here: it’s only three games in, for one, and the Canucks have been battling from behind in all three games. Teams that are defending a lead tend not to take as many shots. They have also faced a couple weak teams, the Flames and the Hurricanes, though it should be noted that both teams managed higher shot totals in their other games this season.
With that said, the Canucks’ defensive efforts thus far this season have passed the eye test: they look far more structured in both the defensive zone and the neutral zone and the Canucks’ forwards have done an excellent job supporting the defence. The Canucks haven’t been giving up odd-man rushes, despite their defence being very active pinching along the boards.
It’s understandable that the Canucks’ defence would be underrated heading into this season. There were plenty of reasons to be concerned:
- The departure of the steady Dan Hamhuis, who is second on the Dallas Stars in ice time this season.
- The trade for the analytically-dubious Erik Gudbranson.
- The dependence on the young and still largely untested Ben Hutton to play a top-four role.
- The signing of Philip Larsen, who wasn’t good enough to stick with the Edmonton Oilers.
- Luca Sbisa.
These reasons fail to take into account a few things, however. First, there are reasons to believe that Gudbranson isn’t quite as bad as his analytically-minded critics have suggested. Second, Hutton is the truth. Third, Alex Edler is healthy and will (hopefully) not miss 30 games this season.
Also, any analysis that doesn’t start with the departure of Matt Bartkowski will never properly capture just how much better the Canucks’ defence is this season compared to last.
As for Larsen not being able to stick with the Oilers, the same could be said of Jeff Petry and he’s been a key contributor to the Montreal Canadiens since they acquired him. It’s possible—strike that, it’s likely—the Oilers are just really lousy at assessing defencemen. Larsen has even taken turns on the top pairing with Edler when the Canucks have been down in the third period and he has looked comfortable in the role.
Meanwhile, it’s entirely possible that Sbisa has turned a corner and has become a capable third-pairing defenceman. We can only hope.
Now, it’s early yet, and the Canucks have a lot of tough opponents coming up. It’s entirely possible that giant holes will be poked in the Canucks’ defensive systems or that injuries will crop up and derail the whole thing. But, for now, the Canucks are arguably the best defensive team in the NHL. Enjoy it while it lasts.
Stats from NHL.com and Corsica.hockey
