The Vancouver Canucks are prone to injuries. The fact that nearly the whole club missed 2023–24 due to injuries was a major factor in Vancouver’s victory. Thatcher Demko’s “almost” was one of the reasons they didn’t make the playoffs. However, this season has had an unexpected advantage that goes beyond Kevin Lankinen’s ascension.
The Canucks lineup was formed by injuries.
A startling rare for the Canucks, the top seven scorers in Vancouver’s 2023–24 season all played 80 or more games. Some of it is self-fulfilling; for example, you can’t score if you’re not skating. However, Canucks supporters are aware of the team’s struggles to stay healthy for a number of reasons. Only two players made it to 80 games in 2018–19 due to severe and pervasive injuries.
Even while it is still ingrained in the minds of fans, that is the worst example. An illustration of how injuries may benefit a club is this season. In particular, injuries sustained by rival teams. Beat them if you can’t join them.
Man, go in the pool.
Although Tucker Poolman’s narrative is a little melancholy, it should turn out okay. Poolman was selected in the fifth round of the 2013 USHL Draft out of Omaha. He was left to grow there and eventually joined NCAA team North Dakota as a second-round defenseman. Between 2017–18 and 2018–19, he alternated between the AHL and NHL before joining the Winnipeg Jets
Over the course of three seasons, he played just 130 games with the Jets due to injuries and COVID-shortened seasons (along with a brief suspension). Jim Benning signed Poolman during the 2022 offseason in the expectation that he hadn’t yet realized his full potential. The agreement was for four years and $2.5 million because right-handed defensemen were and are highly prized commodities.
Have we brought up the Canucks’ injuries? Because Poolman only played 43 games for Vancouver, this one came as a shock early and hard. Since October 2022, he has not participated in any NHL games due to the “concussion that isn’t.” The organization still need a right-handed defenseman even after using his long-term injury relief salary space.
Ups and Downs
Ultimately, Poolman’s cap burden was relocated to Colorado as part of the current management team’s attempt to accumulate salary cap space. His LTIR offered the extra space the Avalanche needed, so they brought him on. Colorado has suffered several injuries, and the room allowed them to acquire enough players to help them get through the interim.
Following surgery in 2022, Gabriel Landeskog is anticipated to return this year. After missing the season’s first twelve games, Artturi Lehkonen made a comeback. Although Valeri Nichushkin’s absence was not an injury, it did deplete the team’s talent. He ought to be put back in very quickly. Due to all of those absences, they had to fill their positions while still having space to bring those wages in the middle of the season.
A commercial agreement was made. Using Poolman’s pay,
