Game of Numbers: Vancouver Canucks Edition

The Game of Numbers is an exclusive THW series looking at upcoming milestones around the NHL. Each team will be looked at individually in three parts – individual player milestones, franchise player milestones, and players that rank in the top 100 in NHL history in any major statistical category.

The Vancouver Canucks – found as an NHL expansion team in 1970 – have had their successes in their relatively short existence. While the Cup still eludes the Western Conference franchise, the Canucks have made three trips to the Stanley Cup Final without capturing the coveted trophy.

While Vancouver’s core seems to be aging, the team will have to take the steps in renewing the success they’ve had by building with and developing their youth.

Until then, the Canucks might have a hard time finding their way back to the finals. Even with that in mind, the veterans and the young players will continue their pursuit in personal and franchise milestones.

Vancouver Canucks Individual Milestones

The Sedins clearly still leading the way in Vancouver, additions of Radim Vrbata and Nick Bonino this season certainly helped the franchise in regaining playoff positioning. Along with these players, Alexander Edler, Alex Burrows and other veteran players continue to increase their personal marks game in and game out. Even young players like Eddie Lack and Bo Horvat have started to make their presence felt in the hockey world with their pursuit of personal milestones.

Games Played:

• 1,100 games played: Henrik Sedin (1,092), Daniel Sedin (1,061)
• 900 games played: Radim Vrbata (871)
• 700 games played: Alexandre Burrows (688), Chris Higgins (678)
• 600 games played: Kevin Bieksa (597), Alexander Edler (568)
• 500 games played: Jannik Hansen (470)
• 300 games played: Nick Bonino (264)
• 200 games played: Zack Kassian (198), Brandon McMillan (171)
• 100 games played: Linden Vey (93), Eddie Lack (82), Sven Baertschi (69), Bo Horvat (68), Jacob Markstrom (50)

Goals:

• 200 goals: Alexandre Burrows (175), Chris Higgins (162)
• 100 goals: Jannik Hansen (77), Shawn Matthias (69), Alexander Edler (66), Brad Richardson (62), Kevin Bieksa (56), Dan Hamhuis (52)

Assists:

• 600 assists: Daniel Sedin (554)
• 300 assists: Radim Vrbata (281)
• 200 assists: Alexander Edler (193), Kevin Bieksa (185), Chris Higgins (167), Alexandre Burrows (167)
• 100 assists: Brad Richardson (87), Nick Bonino (73), Shawn Matthias (62), Derek Dorsett (60), Luca Sbisa (55)

Points:

• 900 points: Daniel Sedin (881)
• 300 points: Dan Hamhuis (290), Alexander Edler (259)
• 200 points: Jannik Hansen (184)
• 100 points: Derek Dorsett (98), Luca Sbisa (67), Zack Kassian (66), Yannick Weber (63)

Vancouver Canucks Franchise Milestones

Just under 50 years old – as an NHL franchise – the Canucks statistical history isn’t as deep as some of the older teams. However, with players like Pavel Bure, Jyrki Lumme and Trevor Linden having played in Vancouver, their history is still rich with franchise milestones. All of these milestones, now, are the benchmark for players like the Sedin brothers and their Canuck counterparts.

Games Played:

• Henrik Sedin (1,092) needs 49 games played to pass Trevor Linden (1,140) for 1st on the team’s all-time list.
• Daniel Sedin (1,061) needs 32 games played to pass Henrik Sedin (1,092) for 2nd on the team’s all-time list.
• Alexandre Burrows (688) needs 83 games played to pass Mattias Ohlund (770) for 7th on the team’s all-time list.
• Kevin Bieksa (597) needs 14 games played to pass Garth Butcher (610) for 13th on the team’s all-time list.
• Alexander Edler (568) needs 12 games played to pass Jyrki Lumme (579) for 16th on the team’s all-time list.
• Eddie Lack (82) needs 12 games played to pass Cesare Maniago (93) for 13th on the team’s all-time goalie list.

Goals:

• Daniel Sedin (327) needs 20 goals to pass Markus Naslund (346) for 1st on the team’s all-time list.
• Henrik Sedin (211) needs 40 goals to pass Tony Tanti (250) for 6th on the team’s all-time list.
• Alexandre Burrows (175) needs 5 goals to pass Greg Adams (179) for 12th on the team’s all-time list.

Assists:

• Daniel Sedin (554) needs 151 assists to pass Henrik Sedin (704) for 1st on the team’s all-time list.

Points:

• Daniel Sedin (881) needs 35 points to pass Henrik Sedin (915) for 1st on the team’s all-time list.
• Alexandre Burrows (342) needs 28 points to pass Greg Adams (369) for 15th on the team’s all-time list.

Powerplay Goals:

• Henrik Sedin (55) needs 7 powerplay goals to pass Ryan Kesler (61) for 9th on the team’s all-time list.

Game-Winning Goals:

• Henrik Sedin (34) needs 16 game-winning goals to pass Markus Naslund (49) for 2nd on the team’s all-time list.
• Alexandre Burrows (27) needs 3 game-winning goals to pass Tony Tanti (29) for 7th on the team’s all-time list.

Wins:

• Eddie Lack (34) needs 3 wins to pass Kay Whitmore (36) for 9th on the team’s all-time list.
• Ryan Miller (29) needs 3 wins to pass Frank Caprice (31) for 14th on the team’s all-time list.

Shutouts:

• Eddie Lack (6) needs 1 shutout to pass Richard Brodeur (6) for 6th on the team’s all-time list.
• Ryan Miller (6) needs 1 shutout to pass Garth Snow, Eddie Lack and Richard Brodeur (6) for 6th on the team’s all-time list.

‘Top 100’ Milestones

As part of the Sedin duo in Vancouver, Henrik was picked third overall in 1999 and hasn’t disappointed in his 14 seasons with the Canucks. While rarely missing a game, the 34-year old has climbed his way into NHL history by marking his territory among the game’s best in numerous statistical categories.

• H. Sedin (704) needs 9 assists to pass Scott Stevens and Jean Beliveau (712) for 49th on the NHL’s all-time list.
• H. Sedin (915) needs 1 point to pass Bobby Orr (915) for 97th on the NHL’s all-time list.

The second Sedin – or the first depending on how you want to place them – Daniel was taken just ahead of his brother in 1999 when he went second overall to the Vancouver Canucks. He’s played in a few less games over his 14-year career than Henrik, but trails his twin by minuscule margins in their statistical comparisons.

• D. Sedin (72) needs 1 game-winning goal to pass Keith Tkachuk (72) for 39th on the NHL’s all-time list.

Ryan Miller played his first season in Vancouver during the 2014-15 season after being signed as a free agent by the team prior to the season. A former fifth-round pick, the 34-year-old has spent time with Buffalo and St. Louis along with Vancouver while raking in the NHL milestones.

• Miller (604) needs 3 games played to pass Dwayne Roloson (606) for 42nd on the NHL’s all-time list.
• Miller (323) needs 2 wins to pass Sean Burke (324) for 23rd on the NHL’s all-time list.
• Miller (35) needs 2 shutouts to pass Jaroslav Halak and Pekka Rinne (36) for 44th on the NHL’s all-time list.

More from the ‘Game of Numbers’ series:

Eastern Conference:
BOS | BUF | CAR | CLB | DET | FLA | MTL | NJD | NYI | NYR | OTT | PHI | PIT | TBL | TOR | WSH

Western Conference:
ANA | ARZ | CAL | CHI | COL | DAL | EDM | LAK | MIN | NSH | SJS | STL | VAN | WPG

NOTE: The ‘Game of Numbers’ series is subject to updates as the 2014-15 season progresses. Individual marks will only appear if the player is within 50 of the specific statistical milestone, while franchise marks only recognize the top 20 in club history.

For more, follow Andrew on Twitter at @AndrewGForbes or his THW column at @Tape2TapeTHW.