We're still a long way away from knowing what the next NHL season will look like, but conversation continues that a Canadian Division could be a part of the plan.
Earlier this week, Greg Wyshynski and Emily Kaplan of ESPN
posted a rundown of what we know so far, which includes some new quotes from deputy commissioner Bill Daly.
"The border situation continues to present challenges, there's no doubt about that," Daly said. "And it will factor in. If it remains exceedingly difficult to travel teams to and from Canada, as I think we've been very clear, one possibility is to create competition within the league among the Canadian clubs."
As of now, all possibilities are still on the table. And I keep reminding myself that one reason why we don't have hockey right now is because the current uptick in coronavirus cases is part of the 'second wave' that experts were expecting would hit this fall. With any luck, the NHL's January target will come when case numbers have crested and started to drop, at the very least.
So, for today, let's look at what it could mean if the Canucks start their season in an All-Canadian division.
I'm not going to worry right now about which cities would host games, or what the schedule would look like. That's all too uncertain for the time being. But it does strike me that a big part of the excitement of Canadian matchups, typically, involved the duelling fanbases that square off in the arenas — whether that's the Battle of Alberta, Habs vs. Leafs, or the excitement that surrounds the annual Western swings for Toronto and Montreal.
I feel like something would be lost with no fans in the stands — although the Flames and Jets certainly brought the intensity this summer in the Edmonton bubble, in the only all-Canadian matchup off the 2020 postseason.
I'll look at how the Canucks match up against Canada's three Western Conference teams in this blog, then look at the three teams from the East next time.
Calgary Flames
The Canucks were 1-2-0 against Calgary last season. They dropped a 3-0 shutout decision on the road, on the second game of the year, then beat the Flames 5-2 at the Saddledome on Dec. 29, thanks to a 2-for-5 showing on the power play, and lost 6-2 at Rogers Arena in their first game back home after the five-game road trip that had ended their post-Christmas hot streak.
After beating the Jets and losing to Dallas in the playoff bubble, the Flames took the 'interim' tag off head coach Geoff Ward in mid-September.
In Travis Green's three seasons behind the Vancouver bench, the Flames have been the better team overall, with 270 points compared to 232 for the Canucks. And while Calgary/Vancouver contests are often spirited affairs, they may have become the Canucks' biggest rivals after signing Jacob Markstrom, Chris Tanev and Josh Leivo as unrestricted free agents.
The Flames are in decent shape, financially.
CapFriendly shows them with about $1 million in available cap space with 21 players signed. Their only remaining RFA is defenseman Oliver Kylington, who is not arbitration eligible and shouldn't be too expensive to re-sign.
Edmonton Oilers
Last season, the Canucks went 2-2-0 against the Oilers, with one win at home and one on the road for each team.
The season started with a 3-2 loss in Edmonton, as Leon Draisaitl posted a goal and two assists and served notice that he was on his way to an Art Ross Trophy win. In late November, the Canucks posted a 5-2 win in Edmonton in the first game of a back-to-back, then fell 3-2 in Vancouver one night later. Then, just before Christmas, Quinn Hughes scored the winner in a 4-2 Vancouver victory at Rogers Arena.
Over the last three seasons, the Oilers are just ahead of the Canucks in the overall standings — 240 points vs. 232. Their greatest success of the McDavid era came just before that, when they took Anaheim to Game 7 of the second round of the 2017 playoffs.
Despite playing in their home rink, the Oilers were one of the biggest disappointments of the 2020 playoff bubble, losing in four games to the Chicago Blackhawks in the qualification round.
Goaltending was a big issue for Edmonton in the playoffs, but they're coming back with Mike Smith and Mikko Koskinen after apparently having been rebuffed on a seven-year offer to Jacob Markstrom.
The Oilers' roster for next season looks pretty much set after they added Draisaitl pal Dominik Kahun on a bargain contract earlier this week. With Jesse Puljujarvi expected back and other new faces including B.C. boys Kyle Turris and Tyson Barrie, the Oilers look like they've improved their depth behind the Big 2. But Oscar Klefbom's status is questionable after Ken Holland said in October that the defenseman is considering surgery that could cause him to miss significant time.
Winnipeg Jets
The Jets have been a tough out for the Canucks for a long time, and last year was no different.
Road games in Winnipeg tend to fall at the end of Eastern swings, as the team is tired, beat up, and eager to get home. Last year, both games between the two teams were at Bell MTS Place. The Jets won 4-1 on Nov. 8 and 4-0 on Jan. 14.
Connor Hellebuyck just won the Vezina Trophy as the NHL's best goalie, but he has been a beast against Vancouver from the moment he entered the league. In his career, he's 7-1-0 against the Canucks, with a total of 11 goals allowed in those eight games.
Mark Scheifele said this week that he's back to 100 percent after suffering that devastating injury in the first period of the first game of the preliminary-round series against Calgary this summer.
The Jets' big move this offseason was bringing back Paul Stastny, another salary dump from Vegas. They also signed depth players Nate Thompson and Derek Forbort, as well as re-upping a number of their own players. After playing 44 games in Winnipeg last season, Luca Sbisa is back on a one-year deal worth $800,000 — a slight raise from the $750,000 deal he signed in Anaheim last season before being claimed off waivers by the Jets.
CapFriendly is showing that they're already over the salary cap, at $82.2 million for 22 players. That's pretty close, but RFA forward Jack Roslovic remains unsigned — although he does not have arbitration rights.
Patrik Laine's name continues to swirl in trade rumours — I wrote last week about whether he'd be a
fit for the Flyers, who could be looking to upgrade their scoring after struggling to create offense in the playoffs.
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