Vancouver Canucks Kiefer Sherwood is on pace to smash the NHL record for hits in a season after recording 59 in his first eight games.

Eight games in, Kiefer Sherwood is looking like a free-agent steal for the Vancouver Canucks. The 29-year-old right-winger signed a two-year contract with Vancouver on July 1 after spending the last few seasons with the Nashville Predators. A physical force, Sherwood has 59 hits so far this season and is on pace to smash the single-season NHL record of 383. 

In his short time with the organization, Sherwood's willingness to throw hits has been on full display. He has nine or more hits in four games and has already tied Luke Schenn's franchise record of 12 hits in a single game. As Sherwood explains, he is aware of how many hits he is throwing but is more focused on impacting the game than padding stats. 

"I definitely look at it, but it's not something that I base my play on," said Sherwood. "Being physical is part of the identity and competitiveness that I need to bring each and every night. Every game is a little different. Sometimes, you might not have as many because we're dominating possession, but I obviously pay attention, and it's something that I want to continue to add to my resume, but it's not something that I'm necessarily chasing."

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Heading into the ninth game of the season, Sherwood is averaging 7.375 hits per game. When calculated over an 82-game season, that would equal 604.75 hits, which is over 220 more than the league record set by Sherwood's former teammate Jeremy Lauzon last season. According to Sherwood, while he believes he can come close to the record and potentially even surpass it, he is aware that the season is long and is more focused on being impactful every day. 

"I don't know if it's sustainable, necessary to get 10 or 12 hits a night, but I definitely want to impose my physicality. It was one of my goals to be up there this year, for sure, but it's more of a reflection of the consistency that I need to bring out each and every night. Doing the math, I definitely think it's feasible for me to break the record... I'm just focused on each night, one at a time. I'm not trying to look at the whole season. There's a lot of hockey to be played. We're only, what, eight games in them. We got a lot of hockey left, so I'm just trying to be consistent." 

Sherwood's physicality has also impressed Head Coach Rick Tocchet, who was never afraid to play a physical game. While there are no recorded total hits from Tocchet's career, he is the NHL leader in Gordie Howe hat tricks and was named the fourth-best fighter in Philadelphia Flyers history during The Hockey News' Enforcers Week in 2023. When asked about his right-winger, Tocchet mentioned how impactful a hitter Sherwood is and how he developed into a player no one wants to match up against. 

"I just remember when I played back in those Philly days, we had a team that hit a lot, and it's contagious," said Tocchet. "He's an old-school guy. He goes through people. It's not that you have to kill a guy, I think, that he goes through people, and he is on his check and makes it difficult. You know, nobody wants to play against the guy when he's on the ice. They're looking around, and he's hard to play against."

On top of throwing hits, Sherwood is very annoying to play against. He doesn't mind jumping into scrums and, as Canucks fans have already seen this season, doesn't mind playing mind games with the opposing goaltender. While there is no stat detailing annoyances caused in a game, if there were, Sherwood would definitely be near the top of the list. 

"It's kind of the game within the game," said Sherwood. "It's definitely an element that I want to bring and can add value to our team. Once you get under guy's skin a little bit and get in their heads, I think it can be successful, not just for me, but for the rest of the team. It's definitely something that I want to continue to grow, but there's a time and a place to and I've worked on it. You've got to be strategic and pick your spots. A big thing for me is I just want to be hard to play against. Whether that's physical, whether that's verbal or mental, whatever it is, a big theme for me is just to be hard to play against and bring that for our team."

The last element of Sherwood's physicality that is rarely talked about is his ability to recover between games quickly. This was a point of emphasis for Sherwood in the offseason, as it will allow him to play at a high level for the entire season. With over 500 more hits projected to be thrown this season, Sherwood will need to ensure he is physically ready to take on that much contact over the next few months.

"I definitely was focusing on being more mobile this summer and more dynamic. I'm definitely focusing more on treatment, though, and trying to recover and try to be at my peak each and every night. I didn't do any special training or anything like that. I think it's more important for me to play my game, not necessarily become a boxer. I'm training to play my game."

Sherwood is the type of player every team needs in their bottom six. As established, he is a pain to play against and can play a physical games without ending up in the penalty box. Ultimately, he has proven to be a key piece of the lineup and should play a significant role for the rest of the season and into the playoffs.