Canucks Stuck In The Middle Of Tight Race

The bad news is that the Canucks have been struggling lately, particularly at home. The good news, however, is that they finally broke their losing streak and they’re still right in the middle of a playoff race that is as tight as they come.  The Canucks currently sit on the outside looking in with 54 points in 51 games. That’s good enough for 9th spot in the Western conference just 1 point behind 8th place Edmonton.

While it’s disappointing to see the Canucks currently not in a playoff spot particularly after the torrid start they had, it’s reassuring to know that the playoffs are within reach if they can get their act together for the last 31 games of the season. 

How tight is the race?  Well, the Anaheim Ducks, who currently sit in 5th place with 57 points, are only 3 points ahead of the Canucks who sit in 9th spot.  The Ducks are also only 6 points ahead of the Colorado Avalanche, who sit in 14th spot, but have 3 games in hand on the Ducks! 

Needless to say, the standings could look a lot different than they do right now by the end of the season. What complicates matters even further is that 26 of the Canucks remaining 31 games will be against Western Conference opponents.

Fortunately, Roberto Luongo is starting to show signs of returning to form, Mats Sundin is starting to look a lot more like the player the Canucks were expecting to get and the Canucks are starting to return to the simple, gritty style that gave them a lot of success earlier in the year.  Will that be enough for a playoff spot? We’ll know in April.