麻豆传媒映画

The 麻豆传媒映画Canucks are in the playoff picture, kind of. They鈥檙e half-cropped out of the frame, and someone鈥檚 blurry fingertip is in the way.

If the playoffs were a selfie, 麻豆传媒映画is a

Hanging just outside the playoff picture is a horrible place for 麻豆传媒映画to be. It is the definition of ambiguity. There鈥檚 nothing to indicate that a postseason run would be successful. Yet there鈥檚 enough potential that fans and management are unlikely to give up on the season.

It鈥檚 rare indeed for a team with a legitimate shot at a wild card spot to sell assets at the trade deadline; it sends a terrible message. So teams will either stand pat, or make a minor acquisition to bolster team depth. Hey, why not? That makes sense.

But there鈥檚 a third scenario that fans should fear. What if management decides to 鈥溾��

It could happen. I blame Los Angeles for this faint flicker of hope. In 2012, they sat 10th in the conference with a month left to play. Suddenly, everything clicked, they went 12-4-3 in their last 19 games, and they snuck into the eighth seed. Then they, y鈥檏now, knocked off the President鈥檚 Trophy-winning Canucks and rode that momentum to a Stanley Cup. It was so epic that .

The moral of this story: if you just squeak into the playoffs riding a bit of momentum, everything can change, right?

Sure, it can! Doesn鈥檛 happen often, though.

Since 1994, the Kings are the only team to win a Cup with the final playoff seed. Admittedly, the new wild card format changes things a little. In the event of an extremely strong division, a powerful team can land in a wild card position. And, due to parity, the difference in points between the conference champion and the second wild card spot is much smaller than it once was.

Despite all that, historically speaking, the most successful teams in the regular season tend to have the best playoff luck. Since 鈥�94, the eventual Stanley Cup winner had more points than the other finalist 16 out of 22 times. They clinched their division 15 out of 22 times, or won the President鈥檚 Trophy outright 6 out of 22 times.

In other words, those wild card spots are appropriately named.

Just say no to trades

There have been murmurings around the Smylosphere that 麻豆传媒映画is looking at trades. It doesn鈥檛 take a Masters Degree in Hockeyology (which I obviously have; Daniel has his PhD) to see that the Canucks need scoring up front in a bad way. With the surprising materialization of young defensive depth this season, many feel that the Canucks can afford to ship off a blueliner.

However, to land that coveted 鈥渢wenty goal scorer," they鈥檒l have to give up something significant. Erik Gudbranson isn鈥檛 going to do it. The only pieces are Alex Edler, Chris Tanev, or possibly Ben Hutton. (Did I just hear you say, "What about Olli Juolevi?" Shut your silly face!)

The most valuable of the three is Tanev, who has garnered league-wide recognition as an elite shutdown defender. He鈥檇 command a serious return. But of course trading him would leave a Tanev-shaped hole in the blueline.

Beyond that, what鈥檚 the likelihood that 麻豆传媒映画is one trade away from contention? I will admit that the team鈥檚 current position in the standings surprises me. General Manager Jim Benning鈥檚 programme of rebuilding that neglected mid-twenties age group between the veterans and the young rookies has been modestly successful. Sven Baertschi has been excellent, and the trade for Markus Granlund that infuriated many is actually showing signs of paying off.

But the gaps are obvious, and many. Scoring depth is sorry, and let鈥檚 be realistic: the team is one serious blueline injury away from disaster. The goaltending has been superb, ?

Don鈥檛 read this as the sky is falling, it isn鈥檛, and that鈥檚 not the message. It鈥檚 simply this: where the Canucks are right now, there鈥檚 little reason, both statistically and practically, to go 鈥渁ll in鈥� to land a spot in the postseason.

But what I think is inconsequential. What do you think, Mr. Benning? What are the playoffs worth to you?