32 NHL Cities in 32 Days: Vancouver Canucks

Alexis Bazydola
May 29, 2020
5 min read

The Location: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

The Vancouver Canucks call Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada home. Between 1995-2001 this venue was also the home of the NBA’s Vancouver Grizzlies. Many notable events have taken place since its opening like Queen Elizabeth II dropping the ceremonial first puck during an exhibition game between the Canucks and the San Jose Sharks. Various concerts have also set up shop at Rogers Arena including Travis Scott, Selena Gomez, Metallica, Childish Gambino, Paul McCartney and many more.

Team History

Beginning in 1967, a new arena was built, the Pacific Coliseum, in order to attract an NHL franchise to Vancouver. Fred Hume made his bid but was rejected. Another proposal was made a few years later and a franchise was awarded to begin play during the 1970-71 season. Bud Poile was named the general manager. During the expansion and amateur drafts, the Canucks secured many key players including Gary Doak, Orland Kurtenbach, and Dale Tallon.

Tough divisional alignments saw the Canucks struggle and fail to make the playoffs for their first four seasons. In 1975, the divisions were realigned and the Canucks saw their first winning season and winning their division. They advanced to the playoffs only be eliminated by the Montreal Canadiens in the first round. In 1976 after being eliminated from the playoffs by the New York Islanders, the Canucks would not have another winning season for 16 years, but would make the playoffs nine times during this period.

1977 saw Jake Milford instated as general manager. He acquired key players Stan Smyl, Thomas Gradin, and Richard Brodeur who would lead the team throughout the 80s. In 1982, the Canucks would advance all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals and face the New York Islanders. They were not successful and this year would mark the final time the Canucks would win a playoff series until 1992.

Pat Quinn was named the general manager in 1987 and began to rebuild the franchise. He looked to acquire young prospects and players over veterans. In 1988, the Canucks chose Trevor Linden second overall in the NHL Draft. The next year’s draft saw the selection of Pavel Bure. In 1992, the Canucks won their division and the first round of the playoffs. The next year they were division champions again.

The Canucks made another Stanley Cup run in 1994. Despite their regular season achievements being lower than the past two years, the Canucks made another unexpected run to the Cup. After besting the Calgary Flames, Dallas Stars and Toronto Maple Leafs, the Canucks met the New York Rangers in the finals. They would force a game 7, but came up empty handed once again.

With Linden, Bure and Trevor McLean still in their prime years, the team looked poised to continue on a winning streak following their 1994 Cup run. However, they would not post a winning record for the next six years. Prior to the 1994-95 season, Quinn stepped down as head coach to focus on his managerial duties bringing in Rick Ley.

In the 1995 offseason, the team acquired Alexander Mogilny from the Buffalo Sabres. During the 1995-96 season, Vancouver acquired Markus Naslund from the Pittsburgh Penguins. He would become the team’s all-time leading goal- and point-scorer. After missing the playoffs in 1997, the Canucks signed Mark Messier to a three-year contract. More losses resulted in management and coaching changes.

Unhappy with the team’s performance Bure requested a trade at the beginning of the 98-99 season. The Canucks would obtain the second and third overall draft picks in 1999 and selected brothers Henrik and Daniel Sedin. The team would once again qualify for the playoffs in 2001 and 2002. The rise of Naslund and Todd Bertuzzi in to high scorers caused the team to lean on their leadership. In 2003, the team won their first playoff series in eight years defeating the St. Louis Blues. In 2004, the Canucks secured the Northwest Division title before being eliminated from the playoffs by the Calgary Flames.

Following the 2004 loss in the playoffs, Dave Nonis was named general manager. The 2005-06 season following the lockout was not the best for the Canucks as they missed the playoffs. This saw the hiring of Alain Vigneault as head coach and the Bertuzzi being traded to the Florida Panthers in exchange for Roberto Luongo. The Canucks would once again win the Northwest Division in 2007. They were eliminated in the second round by the Anaheim Ducks.

The next few seasons saw the rise and fall of the Canucks but they still were not able to make any traction in the playoffs. The Canucks named goaltender Roberto Luongo as the team captain in 2008. This is the first time since 1947 that a goaltender was named captain in the NHL. In October 2010, Henrik Sedin was announced as the new captain. In 2011, the team was awarded their first ever Presidents’ Trophy. They would return to the Stanley Cup Finals that year as well after eliminating the Chicago Blackhawks, Nashville Predators, and San Jose Sharks. They were matched with the Boston Bruins in the Finals. The Canucks were able to extend the series to seven games but again came up empty handed.

Following this Stanley Cup run, the team has had trouble finding its footing in the postseason. While it has still won numerous division titles, they could not translate this to playoff success. This meant many roster changes throughout the years but to no avail. At the current 19-20 season’s pause, the Canucks sit at 18th in the league with 78 points. Within the revised playoff format, they will move on to the playoffs this year.

Fanbase & Traditions

The Canucks introduced their mascot, Fin the Whale, in the 2001-02 season. He proudly beats his drum throughout each Canucks home game. He is also known to blow steam through his blowhole or chomp the heads of fans throughout the arena.

Another well-known tradition of the Canucks fans known as “Towel Power” began in 1982. It began when head coach Roger Neilson waved a towel on the end of a hockey stick as a sort of surrender during their playoff series against the Chicago Blackhawks. He was ejected from the game and fans responded by greeting the team with towels when they arrived back in Vancouver and waving them during games. Now, fans are given towels before playoff games.