It is no secret that the Vancouver Canucks want to do anything it takes to make the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs. As last season showed, a pair of Swedish twins isn’t enough to do the job. What the Canucks need is big contributions from players who have just started to get their careers going.
In the 2015-16 season, Vancouver tossed three rookies into the lineup that came straight out of junior: Ben Hutton, Jake Virtanen and Jared McCann. In addition, the Canucks put sophomore Bo Horvat in a role he wasn’t ready for and gave several more players the chance to make their NHL debuts.