Sunday overreactions: Canucks rebuild long overdue

Jim Rutherford has never been one to mince words.

The Vancouver Canucks president of hockey operations made it clear this week he has no interest in rebuilding, despite a large portion of the fanbase screaming for just that — and you can understand why. The Canucks have taken up residence in the mushy middle for the better part of the past decade, reaching the post-season only twice. Both of those appearances, which included a bubble run in the middle of the pandemic, felt more like anomalies than the start of a journey in the right direction.

Make no mistake — this Canucks team is playing hard. But the roster just may not be talented or healthy enough to do anything more than compete for a playoff spot.Â

Itâ€s time for Canucks to rebuild

A rebuild would likely bring at least a few years of pain, though the reward could be worthwhile. There are examples left and right this season of how good things can be when you come out on the other side — Macklin Celebrini, Connor Bedard and Leo Carlsson look like future faces of the league and their respective teams are turning things around rapidly. Those three should be enough evidence for any team whoâ€s not a lock for the playoffs to seriously consider selling.Â

Then thereâ€s the matter of Quinn Hughes. Vancouverâ€s best player by a mile will be a free agent after next season and without a contract extension this summer, the Canucks will face a difficult choice. Rutherford also noted thereâ€s no plans for a rebuild even if Hughes leaves, yet there may be no better way to kickstart one. If the Canucks trade Hughes because he wonâ€t commit, they could get a haul in return that would no doubt include a handful of prized picks and prospects.Â

Thereâ€s still time for Vancouver to turn its season around, but you have to ask some hard questions. Even in a best-case scenario, what is the Canucks’ ceiling this season? It feels like the answer is just squeaking into the playoffs and a longshot to do any kind of damage while there. Sounds like a situation where a rebuild makes a lot of sense.Â

If the Canucks do decide to rebuild, it could be the perfect season to do so, as a number of teams still have needs they couldnâ€t fill in the summer. The 2026 draft is also loaded with high-end talent at the top, which includes Gavin McKenna, the likely first-overall pick and a potential franchise-changing player. If I was a middling team this year, Iâ€d try to accumulate as many lottery tickets as possible to try to land McKenna.Â

Letâ€s also keep in mind with a rising cap, contracts will be easier to move. Teams that previously had to pass on a player because of his cap hit may be more willing to take on larger deals now, which means plenty of teams will be open for business, which could lead to bidding wars.Â

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The Canucks also boast a handful of prospects that could form a good base like Braeden Cootes, Tom Willander and Jonathan Lekkerimaki. Perhaps none of those end up being elite talents, but adding a potential future top-five pick if they do indeed rebuild could give the Canucks a nice core to start anew. Players like centre Elias Pettersson and Brock Boeser would also still be young enough in a few years to be key contributors on a re-shaped roster if they opt to stick around.Â

I donâ€t think itâ€s any organization’s first choice to rebuild, but you can only spin your wheels for so long. This Canucks squad has a chance to rip the band-aid off and go down a different path. It would be challenging to navigate, but at least there would be a light at the end of the tunnel.Â

Senators are the team to beat in the Atlantic

After a bit of a slow start, the Senators now have points in seven of eight games and have climbed into a tie for second place in the Atlantic Division. Whatâ€s been most impressive about the Senators’ run is that theyâ€ve done almost all of it without Brady Tkachuk. The captain has missed all but three games, yet the Sens are still thriving and feel like a team thatâ€s taken a pretty significant step this year, going from happy to get in last season to real division contender now. There are few teams in the East that can match Ottawaâ€s depth down the middle with Tim Stutzle, Dylan Cozens and Shane Pinto. Montreal and Detroit have cooled off, Tampa and Florida have had middling starts and it remains to be seen how much staying power the surprising Bruins have. The Maple Leafs continue to be a mess. The door is open for the Sens to capture the division.Â

One thing that could ultimately cost the Sens as the season goes on is their goaltending. Linus Ullmark is off to a rough start and it’s a minor miracle Ottawa is sitting at 9-6-4, given heâ€s provided them with a rough save percentage of .874. The veteran also ranks 71st among 73 qualified goalies in goals saved above expected with minus-7.9. I would trust Jeremy Swayman, Andrei Vasilevskiy and Sergei Bobrovsky far more to stabilize their respective teamâ€s creases.Â

The Sens are still a playoff team every day of the week even with below-average goaltending because theyâ€re that talented, but I donâ€t think they can win the division if Ullmark keeps playing like this. Â

Andrew Brunette will be the first coach fired

Itâ€s right around the time of year where some coachâ€s seats start to get hot and Andrew Brunetteâ€s must be pretty close to scalding right now. The Nashville Predators have lost eight of their past 10 games and sit second-last in the Western Conference, only ahead of the Calgary Flames. Expectations were high for the Preds last season, but they won just 30 games and missed the playoffs. Brunette is now in his third season in Nashville and the teamâ€s record has been trending in the wrong direction for well over a year now. If this continues, itâ€s hard to imagine Barry Trotz not making a change soon.Â

Nashville is one of the few teams struggling that had expectations coming into the season. I donâ€t think anyone is too surprised to see the Flames where they are, so thatâ€s why someone like Ryan Huska is probably safe. You could argue that Jim Montgomery should be in a similarly precarious position as Brunette, but he only joined the St. Louis Blues partway through last season. If the Maple Leafs donâ€t stabilize themselves in the next couple of weeks, Craig Berube could also be in trouble. But for now, Brunette seems to be the one that should be most desperate to turn things around.Â

Thereâ€s also two strong, experienced candidates waiting for their next opportunity. Peter Laviolette and Peter DeBoer have a reputation for turning things around quickly, so Trotz could consider one of them sooner than later if he thinks thereâ€s still time to save Nashvilleâ€s season. The Predators really need some consistent results soon, or Brunette could be the first domino to fall.Â

Where would the Maple Leafs be without John Tavares? Itâ€s a scary thought if youâ€re a Leafs fan. Despite turning 35 in September, Tavares is off to the races with 11 goals and 24 points, putting him on pace for a career season. He also has a long history of representing Canada, so one would think he should be on the radar of GM Doug Armstrong as someone that could really help the team in February.Â

Among all Canadian forwards right now, Tavares ranks fifth in points, second in even-strength points, tied for fifth in goals and first in faceoff percentage among players that have taken at least 250 draws. Those stats are hard to ignore and even if heâ€d probably be a winger on Canada, you could use Tavares to take key faceoffs here and there. With Macklin Celebrini, Connor Bedard, Nick Suzuki, Mark Scheifele, Bo Horvat and Wyatt Johnston likely ahead of Tavares in the pecking order, though, itâ€s still going to be an uphill climb for him to make the team. Tavares definitely should be in the middle of every Team Canada roster discussion with the way heâ€s playing, but ultimately, I donâ€t think heâ€ll crack the squad.Â

When the Florida Panthers traded for Seth Jones last March, the deal was almost universally praised. Florida got a missing piece for its blue line and Jones immediately became a key contributor on a team that won its second straight Stanley Cup. Chicago, though, got a decent return itself, with the main piece being 24-year-old Spencer Knight. The Blackhawks netminder is having a breakout season, starting 7-3-3 with a .924 save percentage and, outside of Connor Bedard, he’s probably the biggest reason for his team’s turnaround. Knight sure looks every bit like a franchise goaltender in the making.Â

While it is dangerous to anoint a goalie too soon, Knight is starting to build up a decent sample size for himself. Heâ€s now played well over 100 games and has a very respectable career .907 save percentage, while some of his other metrics this season show how high his ceiling could be. In addition to ranking second in save percentage among goalies with at least eight starts, Knight currently leads the NHL in goals saved above expected with 12.9 and sits second in total saves. With those numbers, Knightâ€s $5.8 million AAV for the next three seasons suddenly looks very friendly and at 24 he could be on the perfect timeline to grow with Bedard and the rest of Chicagoâ€s talented young core. The Blackhawks appear to have made out just fine in the Jones trade themselves.Â

Avalanche will cruise to the Presidents†Trophy

Weâ€re well over a month into the season and the Colorado Avalanche still only have one regulation loss to their name. Thatâ€s impressive given the parity we see on a nightly basis in the NHL.

Nathan MacKinnon is virtually unstoppable right now, notching 13 points in his past four games and leading the league in scoring. The Avs also carry a plus-28 goal differential while no other team is better than plus-14. Theyâ€re clearly the class of the league at this point, and they arenâ€t showing any signs of slowing down. Who would be surprised if they claim the Presidents†Trophy come April?Â

Overreaction?– No

This Avalanche team looks even more formidable than recent seasons as problems have seemingly turned to strengths. Scott Wedgewood has been excellent filling in for an injured Mackenzie Blackwood to start the season, giving the Avs two quality options between the pipes. Colorado squandered a bunch of points in the early part of last season because its goaltending wasnâ€t up to par, but itâ€s suddenly a real catalyst for the squad.Â

The Avalanche also donâ€t appear to be missing Mikko Rantanen at all. Martin Necas has fit in swimmingly on MacKinnonâ€s wing and they used the cap savings from the Rantanen deal to help bring in Brock Nelson, who improves their centre depth and balances out the forward group. Colorado also has its emotional leader back in Gabriel Landeskog, which has given the lineup a huge boost. And if that wasnâ€t enough, we canâ€t forget about Cale Makar, who leads their defence and is arguably a top-five player in the league.Â

The Avs look like one of the fastest teams in the NHL and itâ€s helped them race up the standings and bank a bunch of points early on. Thereâ€s a really good chance theyâ€ll still be standing on top of the mountain after Game 82.

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