The Vancouver Canucks Have A Second-Period Problem

The Vancouver Canucks have a second-period problem. Through their first 21 games, the Canucks have allowed 35 goals in the second period, including four in the middle frame on Friday against the New York Rangers. For comparison, the next highest team in the league is the Toronto Maple Leafs, who have allowed 26 in 21 games.

It would be one thing if Vancouver were also scoring goals in the second period, but that has also been a struggle. The Canucks have only found the back of the net 14 times in the middle frame through 21 games, which ranks tied for 29th in the league. This means that Vancouver is allowing approximately 1.6 goals against while scoring approximately 0.6 goals per game in…