Facts and figures about the players Canucks will open the season with
The Vancouver Canucks have set their roster for the start of the 2023-24 National Hockey League season. The team opted to go with 13 skaters, seven defensemen and two goaltenders. That configuration allowed the Canucks to get as close as possible to the upper limit of the league's $83.5M salary cap. In turn, that will offer the Canucks the most relief possible with Tucker Poolman placed on long term injury reserve where he will almost certainly spend the entire season. Ilya Mikheyev will start the season on standard NHL injured reserve.
So what about the 24 players that the Canucks have selected for their initial roster? Here is a breakdown of the roster using numbers provided by the league itself.
Tallest players: Tyler Myers 6'8" and Carson Soucy 6'5"
Shortest players: Nils Höglander 5'9" & Quinn Hughes/Conor Garland 5'10"
Heaviest players: Tyler Myers 229 lbs and Ian Cole 225 lbs (the Canucks have 8 players listed at 200 pounds or heavier)
Lightest players: Conor Garland 165 lbs & somewhat curiously Guillaume Brisebois 175 lbs
Oldest players: Ian Cole 34 (born in 1989) and Tyler Myers 33 (born in 1990)
Youngest players: Vasily Podkolzin 22 (born in 2001) and Nils Höglander 22 (born in 2000)
According to the league, the Canucks average height is 6'1" and average weight is 194 pounds. The average age is 27.95 which ranks the Canucks as the 12th youngest team in the NHL. For comparison, the five youngest teams in the league to start the season are Buffalo, Columbus, Montreal, Ottawa and Anaheim.
The Canucks opening night roster is comprised of 11 Americans, five Canadians, three Russians, two Swedes and one player from each of Switzerland, Czechia and Latvia.