Below you will find a compendium of interesting stats. Take from them what you will. Or, if you're feeling particularly sluggish this morning, take from them what I have taken from them. Whatever.
+10Â - The Canucks' goal differential through their first dozen games. It's not only the best in the Western Conference -- it's tied for the third in the entire NHL. Mike Babcock and other bright hockey minds have pointed to goal differential as a simple but valuable indicator of a team's overall ability, arguably moreso than even wins and losses. If that's the case, there are reasons to be optimistic that this year's Canucks are indeed for real.
46.8% - That said, the team's corsi rating is still pretty crummy. The Canucks are tied for third-worst in the NHL with the Pittsburgh Penguins and Edmonton Oilers. It gets a little better when you go to score-adjusted corsi (when the game is within a goal and one team isn't pushing desperately to get back into it, which tends to skew the percentages). There, the Canucks sit at 48.8%, which puts them just outside the bottom 10. Fortunately, twelve games still isn't much of a sample for this. But as the season wears on, if the Canucks want to avoid being selected by the stats community as the team bound for a regression -- a prediction that tends to come true -- they need to get both of these corsi ratings above 50% at least.
16 - The Canucks have gotten goals from 16 different players this season. The only two teams with through the season's first month are the Canadiens and Islanders, who boast 17 goal-scorers. That's impressive balance for Vancouver, and good company. Although I'd like to see them develop a go-to powerplay weapon, at least. Right now, they have seven PPGs by seven different guys. Â
2Â - Regulation losses for the Canucks through their first twelve games, but let's not get ahead of ourselves, since there are four overtime losses as well. It makes the Canucks a tough team to measure. Look at it one way and they're a .500 hockey team. Look at it another way and they're a standout group, with the fewest regulation losses in the league (alongside five other teams). Is the glass half-full of half-empty? I'll lean towards full, since no one fills their water glass right to brim, which means a half-full glass is probably closer to three quarters full.Â
0 - Regulation road losses. The Canucks will be the last Western Conference team to suffer a regulation loss, when it happens. And if they can hold off until the Washington Capitals lose one on the road, they'll be the last NHL team, period.
8 - Points for Alex Burrows, who sits second on the team in scoring, a point behind Daniel Sedin and a point ahead of Henrik. He's with the twins after all! Burrows' game has changed over the last few seasons. Despite his reputation around the league, he's no longer the pesky disturber he once was. Now he's more of a savvy veteran, quietly contributing by collecting his points, playing solid defense, and mentoring the kids. It suits him. One wonders when the rest of the league will take notice of what Burrows has become.Â
1 - Penalty shots scored in the NHL this season. It was Alex Burrows.
2.17Ìý- The Canucks are surrendering just 2.17 goals per game thus far, which puts them just outside the top five in the NHL. They sit tied for sixth with the Chicago Blackhawks. Credit where it's due: Ryan Miller's been tough to beat. Same with their penalty-kill.
90.6%Â - Vancouver's penalty-kill is the best in the Western Conference right now. Only the Islanders, at 92.3%, have a better one.
10:04Â - While much has been made of Willie's relcutance to play the kids, he's actually done a great job overall of maintaining the deployment balance he's looking for. Jake Virtanen has the lowest average icetime of any Canuck at 10:04, which means every single skater is averaging over ten minutes a game.Â
19:30 - Speaking of minutes, this is the average icetime of one of the Canucks' centres. It's the highest average icetime among forwards. Guess who it is. Here's a hint: it's not Henrik Sedin. It's not Bo Horvat. It's Brandon Sutter. Okay. Now guess.
