Summer line-up projections for Canucks

It's July 3rd. The Vancouver Canucks don't open the 2023-24 National Hockey League regular season until October 11th against Edmonton. So yes, it's early. And yes, there is plenty of time for things to change between now and then. But it's never too early in a market like Vancouver to try to project how the hockey club might line up for its season opener against the Oilers.

Obviously, Rick Tocchet and the coaching staff will have the final say. And the players will have their chance to stake their claim to line-up spots during training camp and the preseason. But there are a number of line-up locks already on the roster. And based on that information combined with a few educated guesses along with gut feel, here are two possible line-ups the Canucks could ice on opening night.

In this formation, the Canucks are running back the top line they used after acquiring Anthony Beauvillier from the New York Islanders in the February 2nd blockbuster that sent Bo Horvat to the Isles. It was a trio that outscored competition 13-10 in nearly 225 5-on-5 minutes. The line carried a 54.2% Corsi, controlled 54.7% of all scoring chances and accounted for 58.2% of expected goals when on the ice together. There is familiarity and a line that the coaching staff knows can carry play and produce.

That leaves JT Miller to centre the second line between Ilya Mikheyev and Brock Boeser. While Miller was better defensively under Tocchet, there are still concerns about his ability to tilt the ice in the Canucks favour in tough match-ups. And we know Brock Boeser struggled defensively for much of last season. Adding Mikheyev would give that line speed and a defensive conscious that could act as an insurance policy in the event Miller and Boeser get caught up ice.

Newcomer Teddy Blueger slots in as the third line centre and it's likely Conor Garland will start the season on his right side. In this example, we've placed Vasily Podkolzin on left wing hoping for a return to rookie form for the young Russian. Podkolzin's brings size and -- if on his game -- some scoring punch from the left side. It may be a big ask for Podkolzin after what was essentially a lost season last year. But if the Canucks are going to take strides as a team, they will need players like Podkolzin to level up.

The fourth line, in this example, is a trio I'd like to see get a chance to play together -- Joshua, Aman and Di Giuseppe. All three have size. All three can skate. Joshua and Di Giuseppe play the North/South game Tocchet craves and Aman should be better in his second season having soaked in everything he encountered in his first go-round as a rookie. That line could handle physical match-ups and hopefully dictate play down low in the offensive end.

On defense, I expect Quinn Hughes to partner with veteran Ian Cole allowing Carson Soucy and Fillip Hronek to for a solid second pairing. That will leave Christian Wolanin and Tyler Myers to handle third-pair minutes with Akito Hirose and Noah Juulsen as depth defenders ready to slot in when called upon.

In goal, I expect Thatcher Demko and Arturs Silovs to operate on a 55-27 start job share next season.

In this scenario, the Canucks will re-unite Elias Pettersson with two familiar linemates in Andrei Kuzmenko and Ilya Mikheyev. In nearly 200 minutes together at even-strength last season, that line outscored opponents 17-12 and created positive totals in both shot differential and scoring chances. Pettersson and Kuzmenko's chemistry is undeniable and a healthy Mikheyev should offer speed to back off defenders to create more room for Pettersson to work his magic.

This will drop Anthony Beauvillier onto a line with JT Miller and Brock Boeser. Beauvillier can apply his speed to try to drive play and free up pucks for Miller. Boeser will need to find that quick first step that will allow him to get in on the forecheck, too. This isn't an ideal second line scenario, but if the Canucks want to roll out Pettersson and his Russian sidekicks, Beauviller will have to slot in on the second line.

The third line sees Dakota Joshua get the opportunity to play alongside Teddy Blueger and Conor Garland. This line will need to bring some attitude and a will to win its share of puck battles. All three players can be difficult to play against in their own way. The hope has to be that Joshua will pick up where he left off after a successful first full season in the NHL. And, if all goes well, Garland will hit the 20-goal mark for the first time in three seasons with the Canucks.

As pieces move around, a motivated Nils Höglander will get an opportunity to bring hustle and desire along with some skill to the fourth line skating alongside Nils Aman and Phil Di Giuseppe. In this projection, Höglander replaces Podkolzin among the team's 12 forwards. That's not an ideal scenario for Podkolzin or the hockey club. But for the sake of this argument, Höglander deserves a chance to show what he learned from his time in the American Hockey League.

On defense, the Canucks will start Noah Juulsen alongside Quinn Hughes and try Ian Cole with Filip Hronek. That will leave Carson Soucy in his comfort zone as a strong third-pair performer creating a giant tandem with Tyler Myers. Christian Wolanin will have to be patient and wait his turn on the left side playing behind three proven NHL'ers.

In goal, Thatcher Demko and Spencer Martin will form the tandem out of training camp. With the Canucks needing to get off to a strong start, Demko will play and play a lot early. Martin will only see spot duty (back to backs and perhaps a few hand-picked starts to give Demko a rest). That will allow Arturs Silovs to start the season in Abbotsford and carry a heavy workload as he continues on his development path.

**Author's note: Tanner Pearson remains a complete wild card in this exercise. Patrik Allvin mentioned again on July 1st that the reports he's received are that Pearson's hand is healing and the hope is he'll be ready for training camp. That would be an incredible story and everyone should be pulling for this best case scenario. However at this point there is still too much uncertainty over Pearson's future to include him in these summer line-up projections. The same goes for Tucker Poolman.