What’s new with the Vancouver Canucks? That’s what this page is all about.

The Team Spirit Line Change website begins where the Team Spirit books end.

That’s because hockey never stands still … And I can never squeeze everything I want into 48 pages!

Take a look at some of the Canucks collectibles I have in my home.

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Updates

2022-23 Season

February 03, 2023: Elias Pettersson won the Hardest Shot competition at the NHL All-Star Game. His fastest shot was clocked at 103.2 mph.

Season Preview: Vancouver fans look at their two brilliant centers, Elias Pettersson and JT Miller, and can’t help think they may have a 100-point playoff team this year. And they may. But that will depend on a so-so defense led by Quinn Hughes and goalie Thatcher Demko, who looks like he could be a Top 5 netminder in 2022–23. Bo Horvat, Conor Garland and Brock Boeser are solid support players and important team leaders. There is a lot that could go right, but much that could go wrong for the Canucks this year.

2021-22 Season

Season Recap: Vancouver just missed the playoffs, despite winning 40 games. Trevor Miller enjoyed his finest NHL season with a team-best 99 points. He tied Elias Pettersson for the club lead with 32 goals. Playmaking defenseman Quinn Hughes also had his best year as a Canuck. Vancounver finished with three 30-goal scorers, with Bo Horvat joining Miller and Pettersson. Thatcher Demko, the team’s workhorse goalie, was picked for the All-Star Game for the first time.

January 23, 2022: Bruce Boudreau coached his 1,000th NHL game. Only 28 other coaches have been behind the bench for that many contests.

Season Preview: More questions than usual hang over the Canucks in 2021¬–22. Team leaders Elias Pettersson and Quinn Hughes are unhappy with their contracts and defenseman Alex Edler is gone. Newcomers Conor Garland, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, and Jaroslav Halak should help, but they may have trouble reaching the playoffs.

2020-21 Season

Season Recap: Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl finished 1–2 in the race for the Art Ross Trophy, but their 64 goals and 125 assists could not boost the Canucks into the playoffs. Among the few bright spots in a disappointing season was the debut of top prospect Will Lockwood, who played in the final two games.

May 9, 2021: Connor McDavid had one goal and three assists against the Canucks to reach 100 points in only his 53rd game. Only eight other players in history scored 100 points that quickly.

Season Preview: The Canucks played above their heads in the playoffs last year, but Vancouver fans don’t expect lightning to strike twice. The team will need to improve in all areas to keep moving forward. That will depend on big season out of center Elias Pettersson and defenseman Quinn Hughes, who do much of the puck work for the team. J.T. Miller and Brock Boeser are quality forwards, while Bo Horvat is a fine second-line center. Beyond those stars are a lot of questions. If the team answers them, there could be another exciting playoff run.

2019-20 Season

Season Recap: The Canucks completed their 50th season with a winning record, thanks to a balanced attack that starred J.T Miller, Elias Petterson, Quinn Hughes, and Bo Horvat. Vancouver beat the Minnesota Wild and Calgary Flames in the playoffs, but fell behind 3 games to 1 in the next round to the Las Vegas Golden Knights. The Canucks fought back to tie the series behind the goaltending of rookie Thatcher Demko, but lost Game 7 to end an exciting season.

Season Preview: Vancouver fans can start saving up for playoff tickets this season. The team’s talented young forwards—including Bo Horvat, Brock Boeser and Elias Pettersson—should all get better in 2019–20, and a busy off-season brought in some solid defensemen to go with star rookie Quinn Hughes. Goalie Jacob Markstrom gives the Canucks veteran leadership between the pipes.

2018-19 Season

Season Recap: A mid-season slump cost the Canucks a chance to make the playoffs. Brock Boeser, Bo Horvat, and young superstar Elias Petterssen were Vancouver’s top scorers. Jacob Markstrom went 28–23–9 as the team’s main goalie and Alexander Edler was a workhorse on defense. After finishing first six times in seven seasons, the Canucks have been rebuilding for several years. Vancouver fans got a glimpse of the future in 2018–19 with the arrival of Adam Gaudette, Quinn Hughes, and Thatcher Demko—three of the top prospects in the NHL.

Season Preview: Vancouver fans will miss the leadership of the Sedin twins, but they have plenty to cheer about in young stars Bo Horvat, Elias Pettersson and Brock Boeser. Can these three lead the team to a winning season? The defense will need to improve and the goaltending will have to come up big for that to happen. The future looks amazing for the team. Super-prospects like goalie Thatcher Demko and defenseman Quinn Hughes should be difference-makers within a couple of seasons.

2017-18 Season

Season Recap: Vancouver’s luck didn’t improve in 2017–18, as many had hoped. They missed the playoffs for the third straight season, despite good performances by Brock Boeser—who enjoyed a nice year with 55 points in 62 games as a rookie—and young Bo Horvat, who finished third on the team in goals.

January 27, 2018: Brock Boeser won the Accuracy Shooting contest before the NHL All-Star Game.

January 1, 2018: Brock Boeser was named NHL Rookie of the Month for the second month in a row.

November 30. 2017: Daniel Sedin became the 87th member of the NHL’s 1,000-point club.

Season Preview: The Sedin twins aren’t getting any younger, so time is running out for Vancouver to make a big playoff run. Defense and goaltending may be the team’s strengths now—which doesn’t hurt in the postseason. But you have to win in the regular season to make the playoffs, and Vancouver will need prospects like Bo Horvat, Troy Stecher, and Brock Boeser to be difference-makers in 2017–18.

2015-16 Season

Season Recap: The rebuilding program took a step backwards for the Canucks in 2015–16, as the club fell from 48 wins to 31. Young stars Bo Horvat, Sven Baertschi and Ben Hutton fell somewhat short of expectations, but veteran Jannik Hansen worked nicely with the fabulous Sedin brothers, who combined for 116 points.

January 21, 2016: Daniel Sedin scored his 347th goal to pass Markus Naslund as the team’s all-time goal-scoring leader.

Season Preview: Vancouver cleared several players off the roster after a disappointing loss in the first round of the playoffs. Did they bring enough talent back? That will be the big question for the Canucks in 2015–16. And can the Sedin brothers still put up big numbers at age 35? Radim Vrabata was the club’s next-best scorer. He’ll need some help from newcomer Brandon Sutter, and Ryan Miller will need to play great in goal for Vancouver to finish with a winning record.

2014-15 Season

Season Preview: New coach Willie Desjardins and new team president Trevor Linden retooled the Vancouver roster during the off-season. The biggest changes are the trade of Ryan Kesler and the signing of goalie Ryan Miller, who brings experience to a club led, as usual, by the Sedin Twins, Henrik and Daniel. A group of new players has come in with the idea of giving the Canucks more balance, meaning they can now score and defend well on every shift. Will that be enough to earn a playoff spot in the tough Western Conference? That’s the big question in Vancouver this year.

2013-14 Season

April 13, 2014: Left wing Tom Sestito spent more time in the penalty box—213 minutes—than anyone in the NHL in 2013–14.

Season Preview: For much of 2012–13, Vancouver fans wondered who was the team’s #1 goalie. The Canucks answered that question by trading Cory Schneider and keeping Roberto Luongo. The rest of the roster is more or less the same as last season, but the club added two first-round draft picks in 2013, so the future looks bright—as long as the Sedin brothers don’t test the free-agent waters down the road.

More Go-To Guys

This punch-out shield insert of Dale Tallon came in packs of hockey cards that were issued only in Canada. The wording is in both English and French. (O-Pee-Chee Ltd.)

You’ve got to love those crazy Vancouver jerseys from the late 70s. Don Lever later became the first captain of the New Jersey Devils and scored their first goal.

Alexander Mogilny signed this photo. He and Bure were rarely 100% healthy at the same time, but when they were the Canucks were awesome.

  • Dale Tallon — Defenseman
    Born: 10/19/1950
    Played for Team: 1970–71 to 1972–73
    Dale Tallon was a good defender who had the skating and passing skill to run the Canucks’ power play. He was an All-Star twice in three seasons for Vancouver.

  • Gary Smith — Goalie
    Born: 2/4/1944
    Played for Team: 1973–74 to 1975–76
    The Canucks traded Dale Tallon for Gary Smith in 1973. Smith was one of the most off-beat players in the NHL, and always a favorite of the fans. In 1974–75, he set a team record with 32 victories and 6 shutouts. When Bobby Clarke received the MVP award that year, he said that Smith was more deserving.

  • Don Lever — Left Wing
    Born: 11/14/1952
    Played for Team: 1972–73 to 1979–80
    The Canucks had the third pick in the 1972 NHL draft and picked Don Lever. They put him right to work at age 19, and by age 22 he was one of the NHL’s top goal scorers. That season Lever helped the team finish in first place. He was one of the best penalty-killers in the league.

  • Harold Snepts — Defenseman
    Born: 10/25/1954
    Played for Team: 1974–75 to 1983–84 & 1988–89 to 1989–90
    Harold Snepts played rock-solid defense for the Canucks and was instantly recognizable from his big, bushy mustache. He was one of the team’s great heroes on the way to the 1982 Stanley Cup Finals.

  • Tony Tanti — Left Wing
    Born: 9/7/1963
    Played for Team: 1982–83 to 1989–90
    Tony Tanti was a small, quick forward with a hard and accurate shot. He became a star with the Canucks. During one five-year stretch, Tanti scored 204 goals.

  • Alexander Mogilny — Right Wing
    Born: 2/18/1969
    Played for Team: 1995–96 to 1999–00
    Alexander Mogilny wowed Vancouver fans after joining the club in 1995. He scored 55 goals and added 52 assists for 107 points. Mogilny paired with fellow Russian Pavel Bure to give the Canucks a great 1–2 punch.

  • Todd Bertuzzi — Left Wing
    Born: 2/2/1975
    Played for Team: 1997–98 to 2005–06
    Todd Bertuzzi came to the Canucks from the New York Islanders at the age of 23 and soon became a star. He was the power forward on a line with sharpshooter Markus Naslund and playmaker Brendan Morrison. In 2002–03, Bertuzzi finished third in the NHL with 46 goals. Behind Naslund and Milan Hejduk of the Avalanche.

  • Elias Pettersson — Center
    Born: 11/12/1998
    First Season with Team: 2018–19
    From the moment he stepped on the ice for the Canucks, Elias Pettersson was one of the most exciting players in the NHL. He won the Calder Trophy as the league’s top rookie in 2019 and was an All-Star in each of his first two seasons.

More Fun Facts

These stamps came free when you filled up your car at an Esso station in the early 1970s. Esso is now called Exxon in the United States. (ExxonMobil)

  • SEALS OF DISAPPROVAL
    Vancouver nearly got an NHL team in 1968, when the Oakland Seals ran into financial trouble and considered moving north to Canada. The NHL refused to approve the deal, feeling it would look bad for a brand-new team to give up so quickly. The league promised Vancouver a new team in 1970 to make up for stopping the Seals’ move. The Seals stayed in California until 1976, and then moved to Cleveland. They went out of business two years later.

  • FAMOUS FIRST
    The Canucks’ first goal was scored by Barry Wilkins, in a loss to the L.A. Kings. Wilkins was a valuable defenseman for several years before being traded during the 1974–75 season. He was the last Canuck left from the 1970 expansion draft. After Wilkins passed away in 2011, the team set up a display in its arena featuring memorabilia from his career.

  • CUTTING IT CLOSE
    In 2011–12, the Canucks clinched the top seed in the conference playoffs and won the President’s Trophy (for most points in the NHL) on the final day of the season. The last time a team did that was more than 20 years earlier.

League Leaders

Pavel Bure signed this issue of the Beckett Hockey Monthly. The photos on the front and back of the Beckett guides are sensational. (Beckett Media)

  • GOALS
    1993–94 — Pavel Bure — 60

  • ASSISTS
    2009–10 — Henrik Sedin — 83
    2010–11 — Henrik Sedin — 75
    2011–12 — Henrik Sedin — 67

  • POINTS
    2009–10 — Henrik Sedin — 112
    2010–11 — Daniel Sedin — 104

  • GOALS-AGAINST
    No Canuck has led the NHL in this statistic

  • PLUS/MINUS
    2003–04 — Marek Malik — + 35*

    * Tied with another player

In the Stanley Cup Finals

This pennant was sold in Vancouver during the 1982 Stanley Cup. (Author’s Collection)

SEASON OPPONENT RESULT
1981–82 New York Islanders Lost 0–4
1993–94 New York Rangers Lost 3–4
2010–11 Boston Bruins Lost 3–4

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