<p>Ouch. Not only did the <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/combinations">Vancouver Canucks</a> go 1-4 on their recent road trip, but may have lost captain <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/vancouver-canucks-tocchet-says-hughes-tweaked-something-seatlle-kraken">Quinn Hughes</a> again.</p>
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<p>It was clear to anyone who watched Hughes play in Anaheim and Seattle that he is nowhere close to full health. And then came word over the weekend that Hughes is now dealing with a new injury not related to the oblique issue that kept him out for six games recently. And against that backdrop, we asked <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/">CanucksArmy</a> readers for questions for this week&#8217;s Monday mailbag. Hopefully some of these answers can ease a little bit of the pain Canucks fans are feeling these days as the team struggles to score goals and win hockey games.</p>
<p>Let&#8217;s get to those questions, shall we? No surprise there are trade questions with the <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/current-prices-circumstances-vancouver-canucks-sell-nhl-trade-deadline">deadline</a> rapidly approaching on Friday.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Petterson and willander for dobson and barzal. Assuming Canucks would have to add something more but who says no?</p>
<p>&mdash; Lawhi (@LawhiLeonard2) <a href="https://twitter.com/LawhiLeonard2/status/1895899907011330324?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 1, 2025</a></p></blockquote>
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<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">I’m guessing the Islanders. Lou Lamoriello seems to say no to a lot of things. Lou thought Bo Horvat’s extension was too long and too rich, so it’s hard to imagine him feeling that seven more years of an $11.6M contract is something he needs to spring for at this stage, even as the salary cap rises. The inclusion of Willander may give the Isles a reason to reconsider. And without knowing what the ‘something’ you suggest is, it’s hard to fully gauge the hypothetical deal. But I still think the uncertainty around <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/what-should-vancouver-canucks-do-with-elias-pettersson">Pettersson</a> – now and over the long haul – would have the Islanders being the side to take a pass on this proposal. </span></p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Whitecaps more exciting then the Canucks?</p>
<p>&mdash; Canucks-x-91 (@BertelsonJody) <a href="https://twitter.com/BertelsonJody/status/1895900123491942477?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 1, 2025</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>Yeah, seems so. At least for the moment. A win at the death on Sunday. Four goals in a game last weekend. Unbeaten and in first place in their conference (I know it&#8217;s only two games). What more can you ask for? Go Caps! Keep up the good work. And hopefully, some of the good vibes at BC Place somehow find their way across the street.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Wondering why a team that struggles to score goals would not call up their future sniper Lekki for the stretch drive. Seems like a no brainer. No disrespect to Raty, Bains, or Aman.</p>
<p>&mdash; Biff Mcfly (@BiffMcfly43) <a href="https://twitter.com/BiffMcfly43/status/1895944147766587733?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 1, 2025</a></p></blockquote>
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<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Yeah, I don’t get the club’s thinking here. Lekkerimaki has 19 goals in 32 games in Abbotsford this season. The big league club can’t score. This feels like a no-brainer, and yet Lekkerimaki hasn’t seen NHL ice since the middle of January. I understand the theory of letting a young guy cook in the minors. But the big league Canucks need an offensive jolt. Nils Aman and Arshdeep Bains don’t bring that. Lekkerimaki, at least, represents the possibility of some finish. It feels like it’s past the point to bring him back up and have another look. With the team at home for seven of its next eight, send a car to Abbotsford and bring the young sniper back to the show. (I asked Rick Tocchet this very question on Sunday, and he acknowledged that the possibility has been discussed internally.)</span></p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">With so many teams in play for final playoff spot wouldn&#39;t it be advantageous for the canucks to be sellers and try to address some very serious problems in there top six?</p>
<p>&mdash; SuperDaffyd (@SuperDaffyd) <a href="https://twitter.com/SuperDaffyd/status/1895900723529072761?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 1, 2025</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Yes. Yes. A thousand times, yes. But who? Outside of Brock Boeser, a top-six forward and dependable goal scorer, who else on this roster is returning significant assets to address top-six issues? If the Canucks can find a new home for Carson Soucy, they have to do it. But that won’t be more than a draft pick or a prospect.  If there is interest in Pius Suter, I suppose they should consider it. But they’ll miss him and his versatility. I think the Canucks should look hard at whatever moves they can make now, but it feels like the heavy lifting to address the offensive shortcomings will have to be done in the off-season and may involve bigger ticket items like EP40 and Thatcher Demko.</span></p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">is it time to bench EP 40 for a couple of games to send a message that he otherwise isn’t hearing? <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Canucks?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Canucks</a></p>
<p>&mdash; Raffi Cavoukian 🇨🇦 (@Raffi_RC) <a href="https://twitter.com/Raffi_RC/status/1895919198821585404?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 1, 2025</a></p></blockquote>
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<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">I’m of mixed minds here. On one hand, it just seems preposterous to make an $11.6M player a healthy scratch. But if that player is delivering next to no value at the moment, then it’s not like it would really hurt the hockey team. Rick Tocchet often talks of players needing resets. I think it would have to be more along those lines in terms of going to Pettersson, explaining the thought process, and seeing if he was willing to take a seat for a night or two. Flat out making him a healthy scratch just seems like it might make a bad situation even worse – if that’s possible. But the fact that the question can be asked in the first place (and by several people in the inbox) just tells you how far the fall from grace has been. I don’t think it will get to the healthy scratch stage, but I can’t be certain of that either.</span></p>
<blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:2jo2qw3z5rjpqw5wqum2n5yc/app.bsky.feed.post/3ljfvrsnhns2k" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreihifnkbbbkqbetwadjrny52tnb3jj6j7cwk2pf7stirpybpvq5jaq">
<p lang="en">What had the largest negative impact on the team this year Demko&#39;s injuries or Pettersson&#39;s loss of form?</p>
<p>&mdash; <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:2jo2qw3z5rjpqw5wqum2n5yc?ref_src=embed"> (@darkhorse6667.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:2jo2qw3z5rjpqw5wqum2n5yc/post/3ljfvrsnhns2k?ref_src=embed">2025-03-02T16:57:32.472Z</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Given the way Kevin Lankinen has performed almost every time out, goaltending hasn’t been a huge issue for the Canucks this season. So the answer has to be Pettersson’s loss of form. It’s possible that a healthy Demko may have given Canucks Vezina calibre goaltending for a second straight season and changed the conversation around this year’s team, but that’s something we’ll never know. We do know that Pettersson’s struggles have hampered this hockey club and continue to be the single biggest talking point in this market this season.</span></p>
<blockquote class="bluesky-embed" data-bluesky-uri="at://did:plc:rcrbelfhxeb3oc3axrxz2ezs/app.bsky.feed.post/3lje2h37tcs2b" data-bluesky-cid="bafyreidrtbsah7lctmbzwmf2scavpcykizq5ha7aceca4dnkrirlcbjfom">
<p lang="en">In you opinion:What should the D pairings be now?Is ENP/Kid Pettersson ahead of Soucy &amp; Forbort?Who is the best 3RD option?: Juulsen is out (if he was even a good option), Mancini &amp; Ward are still green, Woo seems like an afterthought now, and all other options are lefties.</p>
<p>&mdash; <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:rcrbelfhxeb3oc3axrxz2ezs?ref_src=embed">DSto (@dsto2.bsky.social)</a> <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:rcrbelfhxeb3oc3axrxz2ezs/post/3lje2h37tcs2b?ref_src=embed">2025-03-01T23:15:41.591Z</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://embed.bsky.app/static/embed.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Assuming full health (which clearly isn’t the case for the captain), I’d run Hughes-Hronek and Marcus Pettersson with Myers. Then you get into the battle between Derek Forbort and D-Petey. For what he is, Forbort has been solid. He’s a veteran presence and a penalty killing ace and since Forbort has held down a regular spot on the blueline in mid-December, the Canucks PK has shot to the top of the league rankings. He brings value in that role. I don’t think the Canucks want to take him out of the lineup. I also don’t think they like the idea of sliding him over to the right. So then it comes down to D-Petey vs. Carson Soucy – two lefties – vying for the spot on the right. The rookie looks like a keeper and already appears to be one of this team’s six best defencemen. It’s just a question of how much the team trusts him to play on the right side right now to keep him in the lineup on a nightly basis. Or perhaps, for D-Petey’s development, the club should live with Forbort on the right so the youngster can continue to grow in his natural position.</span></p>
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Ouch. Not only did the <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/combinations">Vancouver Canucks</a> go 1-4 on their recent road trip, but may have lost captain <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/vancouver-canucks-tocchet-says-hughes-tweaked-something-seatlle-kraken">Quinn Hughes</a> again.
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&nbsp;

It was clear to anyone who watched Hughes play in Anaheim and Seattle that he is nowhere close to full health. And then came word over the weekend that Hughes is now dealing with a new injury not related to the oblique issue that kept him out for six games recently. And against that backdrop, we asked <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/">CanucksArmy</a> readers for questions for this week's Monday mailbag. Hopefully some of these answers can ease a little bit of the pain Canucks fans are feeling these days as the team struggles to score goals and win hockey games.

Let's get to those questions, shall we? No surprise there are trade questions with the <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/current-prices-circumstances-vancouver-canucks-sell-nhl-trade-deadline">deadline</a> rapidly approaching on Friday.

https://twitter.com/LawhiLeonard2/status/1895899907011330324

<span style="font-weight: 400;">I’m guessing the Islanders. Lou Lamoriello seems to say no to a lot of things. Lou thought Bo Horvat’s extension was too long and too rich, so it’s hard to imagine him feeling that seven more years of an $11.6M contract is something he needs to spring for at this stage, even as the salary cap rises. The inclusion of Willander may give the Isles a reason to reconsider. And without knowing what the ‘something’ you suggest is, it’s hard to fully gauge the hypothetical deal. But I still think the uncertainty around <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/what-should-vancouver-canucks-do-with-elias-pettersson">Pettersson</a> – now and over the long haul – would have the Islanders being the side to take a pass on this proposal. </span>

https://twitter.com/BertelsonJody/status/1895900123491942477

Yeah, seems so. At least for the moment. A win at the death on Sunday. Four goals in a game last weekend. Unbeaten and in first place in their conference (I know it's only two games). What more can you ask for? Go Caps! Keep up the good work. And hopefully, some of the good vibes at BC Place somehow find their way across the street.

https://twitter.com/BiffMcfly43/status/1895944147766587733

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Yeah, I don’t get the club’s thinking here. Lekkerimaki has 19 goals in 32 games in Abbotsford this season. The big league club can’t score. This feels like a no-brainer, and yet Lekkerimaki hasn’t seen NHL ice since the middle of January. I understand the theory of letting a young guy cook in the minors. But the big league Canucks need an offensive jolt. Nils Aman and Arshdeep Bains don’t bring that. Lekkerimaki, at least, represents the possibility of some finish. It feels like it’s past the point to bring him back up and have another look. With the team at home for seven of its next eight, send a car to Abbotsford and bring the young sniper back to the show. (I asked Rick Tocchet this very question on Sunday, and he acknowledged that the possibility has been discussed internally.)</span>

https://twitter.com/SuperDaffyd/status/1895900723529072761

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Yes. Yes. A thousand times, yes. But who? Outside of Brock Boeser, a top-six forward and dependable goal scorer, who else on this roster is returning significant assets to address top-six issues? If the Canucks can find a new home for Carson Soucy, they have to do it. But that won’t be more than a draft pick or a prospect.  If there is interest in Pius Suter, I suppose they should consider it. But they’ll miss him and his versatility. I think the Canucks should look hard at whatever moves they can make now, but it feels like the heavy lifting to address the offensive shortcomings will have to be done in the off-season and may involve bigger ticket items like EP40 and Thatcher Demko.</span>

https://twitter.com/Raffi_RC/status/1895919198821585404

<span style="font-weight: 400;">I’m of mixed minds here. On one hand, it just seems preposterous to make an $11.6M player a healthy scratch. But if that player is delivering next to no value at the moment, then it’s not like it would really hurt the hockey team. Rick Tocchet often talks of players needing resets. I think it would have to be more along those lines in terms of going to Pettersson, explaining the thought process, and seeing if he was willing to take a seat for a night or two. Flat out making him a healthy scratch just seems like it might make a bad situation even worse – if that’s possible. But the fact that the question can be asked in the first place (and by several people in the inbox) just tells you how far the fall from grace has been. I don’t think it will get to the healthy scratch stage, but I can’t be certain of that either.</span>

https://bsky.app/profile/darkhorse6667.bsky.social/post/3ljfvrsnhns2k

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Given the way Kevin Lankinen has performed almost every time out, goaltending hasn’t been a huge issue for the Canucks this season. So the answer has to be Pettersson’s loss of form. It’s possible that a healthy Demko may have given Canucks Vezina calibre goaltending for a second straight season and changed the conversation around this year’s team, but that’s something we’ll never know. We do know that Pettersson’s struggles have hampered this hockey club and continue to be the single biggest talking point in this market this season.</span>

https://bsky.app/profile/dsto2.bsky.social/post/3lje2h37tcs2b

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Assuming full health (which clearly isn’t the case for the captain), I’d run Hughes-Hronek and Marcus Pettersson with Myers. Then you get into the battle between Derek Forbort and D-Petey. For what he is, Forbort has been solid. He’s a veteran presence and a penalty killing ace and since Forbort has held down a regular spot on the blueline in mid-December, the Canucks PK has shot to the top of the league rankings. He brings value in that role. I don’t think the Canucks want to take him out of the lineup. I also don’t think they like the idea of sliding him over to the right. So then it comes down to D-Petey vs. Carson Soucy – two lefties – vying for the spot on the right. The rookie looks like a keeper and already appears to be one of this team’s six best defencemen. It’s just a question of how much the team trusts him to play on the right side right now to keep him in the lineup on a nightly basis. Or perhaps, for D-Petey’s development, the club should live with Forbort on the right so the youngster can continue to grow in his natural position.</span>

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