Looking back on the first half of the Vancouver Canucks' season, there seem to be just as many questions as there are answers surrounding this enigmatic team. After starting the year with great promise by managing an above .500 record despite an early ten-game road trip, they struggled mightily averaging a porous two goals per game during a 15-game stretch, which included a six-game losing streak. Their record during that time versus divisional opponents was discomforting to say the least.

However, since that slide, the Canucks reeled off seven straight wins, including three pivotal matches against division rivals Calgary and Edmonton, to claim the title of Northwest Division leaders at the halfway point. Although, I am sure there are some who would argue that leading the Northwest Division is hardly something to brag about this season. With 14 roster spots occupied by players who had previously never worn the endangered Orca previous to this year, there is a lot to examine on this team; so let’s start where the Canucks did, in goal.

Goaltenders

Roberto Luongo – He’s arguably the biggest off-season acquisition by any team in the NHL, “Louie,” as he is referred to by teammates, has made a genius out of General Manager Dave Nonis, who gave up incumbent Todd Bertuzzi in the deal. Regardless of Bertuzzi’s injury status, Luongo has provided his inexperienced defense with a crutch to lean on all year long. He was just voted to the All-Star game as the starting goaltender, the first time in history any Canucks keeper has ever been afforded that honor. Despite being susceptible to the odd soft goal, Luongo has managed to do what every star netminder should do, bounce back to give his team a chance. He will earn his paycheck in the playoffs; no matter how well he does for this team during the regular season, if he flops in what would be his first every post-season, the critics will be calling. Grade: A

Danny Sabourin – There’s not much of a resume for last season’s AHL goaltender of the year, and that might be a good thing. Sabourin has only made three starts this season with Luongo carrying the load and has been up and down when between the pipes. In his first game, he started off horribly with two goals in the first four shots, although he settled down the rest of the way despite the team’s loss. In his second appearance, he was yanked and though he played reasonably well in his third chance, the team was unable to earn him the victory. The problem with Sabourin is that, fair or not, a backup goaltender has to provide his team with some form of relief throughout the regular season in addition to imparting a little bit of assurance that he can get the job done when needed. So far, Sabourin has done neither. Grade: C-

Defense

Mattias Ohlund – Was heralded as the rock that was the Canucks defensive core coming into its first season sans Ed Jovanovski. Ohlund has been his consistent self with relatively unspectacular play throughout the majority of the season. However, he has recently provided some offense and upped his goal total to eight on the year to take the lead among Canuck blue-liners in points. Nothing flashy here, but for a guy who averages nearly 25 minutes a night and rarely makes a gaff playing against the oppositions top forward units, it is hard to complain. Grade: A-

Sami Salo – If only this guy would unload his cannon shot a little more often! Salo has been quoted as saying he is somewhat scared of hurting someone and therefore keeps the bullet in the barrel more often than head coach Alain Vigneault would like to see. Salo has missed significant time with both shoulder and groin injuries this year, but when able to play, he has added another dimension to the team’s attack with his puck-moving ability and power-play presence, and was arguably the teams MVP during the first ten games before his injury. Grade: B+

Willie Mitchell – He’s another defenseman who was forced to miss time due to injury early in the season. Many questioned the $3.5 million the Canucks paid to bring the BC native home to anchor the defense, but at the halfway point, this team ranks first overall on the penalty kill and Mitchell is out there for nearly a full two minutes every time his team is down a man. He uses his long stick and spectacular positioning to his advantage when shorthanded and could be credited with one of the prettiest passes of the Canucks’ season on a shorthanded goal Brendan Morrison netted versus the Flames two weeks ago. Grade: B+

Kevin Bieksa – There’s a lot of questions surrounding Bieksa heading into the year with increased expectations due to the departure of Jovanovski. So far, Bieksa has exceeded the lofty goals set and has even garnered All-Star consideration with a share in the team-lead for goals among d-men at eight. Furthermore he has provided a solid dose of grit and emotion drawing comparisons to the previously mentioned Jovanovski and garnering him the nickname “Little Jovo” by fans and players alike. More importantly, when the team was short with injuries, Bieksa stepped in and picked up the slack and has been topping out around the 30 minute per game mark recently. Grade: A+

Lukas Krajicek – He’s the other player the Canucks got in the blockbuster deal with Florida; Krajicek has been a welcome addition to the team’s blue line. He has provided some offensive flash and is an adapt puck-handler and passer while holding his own in the Canucks end. Nothing gaudy to report, but for a player who some weren’t sure could handle the everyday workload; he has more than met expectations and has a bright future. Grade: B

The rookies (Patrick Coulombe, Alexandre Edler and Luc Bourdon) – Bourdon had barely a cup of coffee before being shipped back to the QMJHL just in time to help Canada win another gold, but was largely a disappointment in his brief stint with the big club. The same cannot be said for the other two as both have stepped in to help hold the fort down when the team has experienced roster shortages due to injury. Edler, much like his country mate Ohlund, has been unspectacular but very steady, which is saying a lot for a 23-year-old rookie defenseman with no NHL experience, even earning significant Penalty Kill time. Coulombe has been a different sort of steady for the Canucks after almost making the team out of camp. Upon getting called up, he quickly earned time on the top power-play unit. Although he saw little ice-time asides from that, his play with the man advantage was enough for the Canucks to dress a seventh defenseman for a period of time in order to make use of his offensive flair.

The other guys (Yannick Tremblay and Rory Fitzpatrick) – The biggest news here was that Fitzpatrick, at the age of 31 and with only one assist this season, nearly cracked the starting line-up for the Western Conference All-Star team after a friend of his created a website backing the beleaguered blue-liner. The truth of the matter is that his votes began to decline once he returned to the line-up; perhaps because fans got to see how much Fitzpatrick really does not deserve to be suiting up in Dallas next week. As for Tremblay, the much journeyed rear guard has seen limited action with the Canucks this season in one call-up after an injury plagued start to the year and has been less that stellar despite netting a power-play goal in his first appearance. Grade: D

Forwards

Markus Naslund – Captain Canuck said at the start of camp that he wanted to be a team guy and do whatever coach Vigneault asked of him. I am sure the coach made it very clear that “Nazzy” had to improve on his team worst -17 rating last season, but I doubt he anticipated it would come at the expense of his captain’s offensive production. After starting off somewhat respectably with 12 goals in his first 24 games, Naslund went on a 17-game goalless drought and now sits in the middle of the pack on his own team in scoring. The problem is, for $6 million per year, you would expect Naslund to be near the top of league, let alone his own team. At least the effort has been there and you can even catch a quick glimpse of Naslund back-checking from time to time. Still, with the new cap, your stars have to be your stars, and Naslund hasn’t been one for the Canucks to this point, though his leadership ability counts for something. Grade: C+

Daniel and Henrik Sedin – They’re grouped together in every other scenario, so why not here as well? The brothers Sedin have continued to build on their breakout season from last year and established themselves as one of the most formidable offensive duos in the entire league. Furthermore, as the season continues, they are gradually making the Canucks their team, something many Vancouver fans weren’t sure they would ever be able to do. They are both on pace to crack the point per game barrier and they cycle the puck better than anyone else in the league. Their only problem is that Vigneault has used them to try and jumpstart what seems like the entire roster throughout the season. From Taylor Pyatt to Ryan Kesler, the Sedin’s have not had the luxury of a common right winger for more than a few games all year, which has led to somewhat inconsistent production. Grade: A

Brendan Morrison – After spending the better part of a decade in and out of coach Marc Crawford’s doghouse, Morrison is finally starting to show some signs of life. In the past month, he has netted two of the Canucks’ prettiest goals of the year in addition to once again being used in all situations. His face-offs are still not there, although it’s not obvious whether a center of his stature will ever be a dominant middle man. It seems now as though his hip surgery in the off-season was the main contributor to his slow start and now that he’s healthy, his production is again on track. Grade: B+

Taylor Pyatt – He showed up to camp this year looking very much like the potential rebirth of Todd Bertuzzi, a big, bulking power forward with great hands who has yet to realize his potential (he’s from Sudbury as well). The only problem is Pyatt can’t touch Bertuzzi in the skating department and lacks the mean streak that once made Bertuzzi the league’s premiere power forward. Pyatt was smart enough to realize that when playing with the Sedins, stand in front of the net and be rewarded. He was nine times, and therefore he has far exceeded the team’s expectations for the forward who came cheap by way of Buffalo. Grade: B

Ryan Kesler – After signing a steep offer-sheet from the Philadelphia Flyers for $1.9 million per season, which was subsequently matched by the Canucks, much was expected out of the sophomore forward. However, Kesler has failed in his attempts to deliver what many thought should be at least a 20 goal campaign. His five goals have come in flurries as his offense has been inconsistent. Despite the lack of finish, Kesler has managed to provide a spark with his hustle and fearlessness in the corners. Grade: C+

Trevor Linden – Rejuvenated after spending a summer labour negotiation-free, Linden has proven that he still knows how to score after spending the past five plus seasons being used in a primarily defensive role. It took awhile for Vigneault to show faith in the former Canucks captain, which is why his numbers aren’t higher, but since his inception onto the team’s top power-play unit, Linden has provided a big body in front for the Sedins to find, and has five goals to show for it in a short span. Grade: B+

Alexandre Burrows – Another spark plug for the Canucks, Burrows has had more goals disallowed than counted this season. Incredibly effective on the penalty kill and always under the opponents’ skin, he has replaced the departed Jarkko Ruutu without notice. When Burrows got the call up from Manitoba last season, he was the Moose’s leading scorer and even had a four-goal game versus the Kings late last year, so more offense would be nice. Grade: B-

Matt Cooke – Of late, Cooke has been terrific for Vancouver, hitting everything that moves and starting to find the back of the net on a regular basis, including a game-winner a few weeks ago versus Calgary. However, if this was written a month ago, there would be very little positive to report about a player making $1.5 million per season and only one goal to show for it. Grade: C+

Jan Bulis – The heir apparent to Anson Carter has done little to make Canucks’ fans forget about the ‘Brother’s Line’ that was so effective last season. Despite netting 20 goals last season in a checking role for the Montreal Canadiens, Bulis has had trouble finding a niche with his new mates. Furthermore, he has reinforced the notion that dogged him with Bob Gainey in Montreal that he was a hard player to coach. Grade: C-

Josh Green – The journeyman center finally found a home this season in Vancouver, sticking with a big club for the first time out of the gate in his nearly ten year career in the NHL. He doesn’t see a great deal of ice-time but has been counted on, and delivered, on the team’s penalty kill. He has good speed for his size and will remain a decent fourth line player who can occasionally bury a goal or two.

Marc Chouinard – Another one of the Canucks additions this past off-season, Chouinard was brought in to dominate the face-off circle and better his 14 markers from last year with an increased role this season. Unfortunately for both parties involved, Chouinard has seen more of the press box this season than the face-off circle and has done little to justify his $1.1 million contract. Grade: D

The rest (Rick Rypien, Tyler Bouck, Tomi Santala, Jesse Schultz) – This group has seen so little ice-time, that it is hard to identify what they have done good, bad or indifferent. They have been brought in and out of the line-up with little notice, which is a good thing to have from your call ups. Grade: Incomplete.

This edition of the Vancouver Canucks has exceeded almost everyone’s expectations. Not all of Nonis’ acquisitions have paid off, but the one that has meant the most, the acquisition of Luongo, has been a huge success. When many wrote them off at the quarter mark, they seem to have found their offense and the locker room is filled with smiles again, reminding many of the fun group that exemplified the team in the 2002-03 season. At the very least, the playoffs seem like they are within reach, which makes it better than last year if nothing else.

Team Overall Grade: B+