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2 reasons why Canucks missed 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs
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The 2023-24 NHL season, while being literally only two years ago, now seems like ages ago for the Vancouver Canucks . They were one of the NHL's hottest teams, winning the Pacific Division and looking every bit a Stanley Cup contender under the leadership of head coach Rick Tocchet, who had been hired midway through the previous season.
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Despite a disappointing loss to the Edmonton Oilers in Game 7 of the Western Conference Semifinal that season, it seemed as though the sky was the limit for the Canucks and their mixture of young and veteran talent that appeared on the verge of something special.
However, what has followed since that season has been nothing short of a horror show for the Canucks. Not only did they miss the Stanley Cup Playoffs last year while dealing with reports that were later confirmed of a serious locker room rift between star players, but they are the worst club in the Western Conference this season, which began with Adam Foote assuming the head coaching duties for Tocchet, who departed for the Philadelphia Flyers .
Not only did the Canucks prove unable to string together any kind of consistency, but they also endured yet another painful departure of a franchise player; this time, team captain and former Norris Trophy winner Quinn Hughes was sent packing. He was dealt to the Minnesota Wild and while the Canucks received a considerable package in return, it will still go down as one of the most painful moves in team history.
Additionally, the Canucks traded Conor Garland to the Columbus Blue Jackets while also trading Tyler Myers to the Dallas Stars and Kiefer Sherwood to the San Jose Sharks .
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Just how did everything seemingly begin to go wrong for the Canucks at the same time, culminating in what has been truly a miserable 2025-26 campaign for them?
The Canucks' scoring and penalty killing have both been abysmal
Perhaps the most obvious hockey adage of them all is that teams aren't going to win when they don't score enough goals. The Canucks made a theme of that this season, as they're currently ranked 30th in the NHL with an average of just 2.56 goals per game. That's only slightly better than the next-to-last-ranked teams, the Chicago Blackhawks (2.54 goals per game) and the Calgary Flames (2.53 goals per game).
One of the most startling falls from grace was that of Elias Pettersson , who is only two seasons removed from registering 89 points – and only three seasons removed from scoring 109 points. So far this season, Pettersson has managed only 15 goals with 33 assists in the 67 games that he's played in. For a player who carries the club's highest salary cap hit of $11.9 million per season, those kinds of numbers just aren't getting it done for a team already badly struggling to score goals.
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Additionally, forward Brock Boeser , who chose to forgo free agency and returned to Vancouver with a multi-year contract extension, has only managed 16 goals so far this season; like Pettersson, he's only two seasons removed from a far more productive campaign, having registered 40 goals in 2023-24.
And it's certainly not beneficial when a team can't keep the opposition's power play from scoring at near will against them. As of April 3, only days after their elimination from any hope at the postseason was etched in stone, Vancouver's penalty-killing efficiency was the worst in the NHL at just 71.6 percent.
Speaking of the defensive side of the puck, the Canucks have surrendered the most goals in the NHL this season. Not being able to score while also being unable to keep the puck out of your own net isn't a winning recipe, and Vancouver discovered that the hard way.
Goaltender Thatcher Demko just cannot stay healthy
© Bob Frid-Imagn Images
One of the biggest concerns for the Canucks health-wise is that goaltender Thatcher Demko, who was once seen as one of the best young players at his position in the NHL, has also become one of the most injury-prone players in hockey.
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This season, the Canucks shut Demko down in late January so that he could undergo hip surgery, as he hasn't played since January 10. Demko had been sidelined starting after Game 1 of the Western Conference Quarterfinal against the Nashville Predators in 2024, missing the rest of the playoffs. He also missed considerable time last season, adding to his total of nearly 160 career missed games.
Demko's talent is undeniable, and had he been healthy, there's a good chance he would have been among the goaltenders chosen to represent the United States at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan. However, without their starting goaltender, the Canucks were already mostly behind the 8-ball, and that's before their defensive and scoring issues came into play.
It may be a long time before the Canucks taste playoff hockey again and get the rotten taste of this season out of their mouths.
Related: 2026 NHL Mock Draft 5.0: Pre-playoff predictions as regular season nears end
