The Vancouver Canucks sit atop the league standings at the holiday break.
The Vancouver Canucks could not ask for a better start to the 2023-24 season. They lead the NHL in multiple categories and are over halfway to their point total from last season despite only playing 35 games. Here are five surprising stats from their season so far.
22 Regulation Wins
One major difference between this season and the 2022-23 campaign is that Canucks ability to close out games in regulation. Of their 23 wins, 22 of them have been in regulation, which is one more than they had all of last season. With how close the standings can get, preventing the opposition from collecting a point could be crucial if Vancouver wants home-ice advantage in the postseason.
20-0 When Leading After Two Periods
Maybe the most impressive stat on this list is that the Canucks are a perfect 20-0 when they hold the lead after two periods. This means that they are not only able to establish leads early in games, but the team is doing a good enough job defensively to shut down the opposition in the third period. If they can keep up this trend, they will become just the sixth team to play 82 games and have a perfect record when leading after two since the 2000-01 season.
+46 Goal Differential
Not only has Vancouver's offence been elite this season, but so have their goaltenders. Coming out of the holiday break, they lead the league in goal differential at +46 and sit top two in goals for per game and goals against per game. This is a massive swing from the -14 goal differential they had through 35 games in 2022-23. Overall, this is an encouraging stat as it shows that the Canucks can produce offensively while still being one of the league's best defensive teams.
Have A Negative Shot Differential This Season
Despite leading the league in goals with 135, the Canucks are often outshot in their games. In fact, they have won the same amount of games (11) that they outshoot the opposition as they have when being outshot. They have also played the same amount of games (17) in which they outshoot the opposition compared to being outshot. Ranked 29th in shots per game at 28.0, this statistic is directly related to the fact that Vancouver spends most third periods defending leads rather than pushing for game-tying goals. While on paper, this may look concerning, it is a positive as it shows the Canucks can play the majority of the third in their own end yet still get a positive result.
A Dominate Force At Home
After finishing 22nd last season in home wins, Vancouver is off to a hot start in 2023-24, compiling a record of 13-3-1 through their first 17 games at home. While they do not have the most points, they lead the league in point percentage and are just six wins shy of last season's total. Averaging a league-best 4.39 goals per game while playing at home, the Canucks have made Rogers Arena a fortress so far this year which should play a massive factor come playoff time.
