Canucks training camp preview

With training camps set to begin on July 13 as part of Phase 3 of the NHL Return to Play Plan, NHL.com is taking a closer look at each of the 24 teams in the Stanley Cup Qualifiers.

Today, the Vancouver Canucks.

The Vancouver Canucks were 36-27-6 (.565 points percentage) in the regular season and will enter the Stanley Cup Qualifiers as the No. 7 seed in the Western Conference. They will play the No. 10 seed, the Minnesota Wild (35-27-7, .558), in one of eight best-of-5 series, and the winner will advance to the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

The Canucks have one of the best young cores in the NHL with centers Elias Pettersson, 21, Bo Horvat, 25; rookie defenseman Quinn Hughes, 20; and right wing Brock Boeser, 23. They also have one of the top breakout players of the season, left wing J.T. Miller, who led them in scoring with an NHL career-high 72 points (27 goals, 45 assists) in 69 games.

Vancouver, which had three players selected to the NHL All-Star Game this season (Pettersson, Hughes, goalie Jacob Markstrom), was eighth in the League averaging 3.25 goals per game, fourth on the power play (24.2 percent) and second in face-off win percentage (54.0 percent).

It is easy to see how the Canucks could be a handful for the Wild in their qualifier series. They can end their Stanley Cup Playoff drought of four seasons by defeating Minnesota.

"Everybody, not just us, every team is going to have to find, in these very unusual circumstances, another level of compete and readiness," Miller told Sportsnet on June 15. "I know it's going to be probably easier than it looks, but I think we're all going to be ready. We're really excited to get back to playing, at least."

Player to watch

Forward Tyler Toffoli has been a great fit on the top line with Pettersson and Miller, scoring 10 points (six goals, four assists) in 10 games after he was traded to Vancouver by the Los Angeles Kings on Feb. 17. Toffoli, who can become an unrestricted free agent after the season, is a high-end goal-scorer (24 goals in 68 games) and brings championship experience, having won the Stanley Cup with the Kings in 2014, to the young Canucks.

Biggest question

Can Markstrom carry over his strong regular-season performance to the playoffs? He has been among the most valuable goalies in the NHL over the past two seasons, starting 103 games (ninth) with a .915 save percentage. This season, Markstrom was selected to the NHL All-Star Game for the first time and his NHL career-high .918 save percentage (in one full season) was fourth among goalies to play at least 40 games. But it remains to be seen if Markstrom, who has never played in the NHL postseason and can become an unrestricted free agent after the season, can replicate his regular-season performance in the qualifiers after the long layoff and his recovery from knee surgery Feb. 26. Vancouver was 3-5-0 during Markstrom's absence before the NHL season was paused March 12 due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus.

Injury updates

Micheal Ferland, F --Hopeful for training camp after being limited to 14 games because of recurring concussion symptoms.

Josh Leivo, F --Hopeful for training camp after being limited to 36 games because of a fractured kneecap.

Jacob Markstrom, G --Expected to be healthy after missing the final eight regular-season games.

Chris Tanev, D -- Expected to be healthy after a lower-body injury sustained March 10, Vancouver's final game before the season was paused.

Fresh face

Defenseman Oscar Fantenberg did not make his Canucks debut until Dec. 1 after dealing with an illness but became a fixture on their third pair with Tyler Myers down the stretch. Fantenberg, who previously played for the Kings and Calgary Flames and in each of the past two postseasons before signing with Vancouver on July 1, 2019, had two assists in his final three games of the season.

Telling stat

Hughes led NHL rookies with 53 points (eight goals, 45 assists) and 25 power-play points (three goals, 22 assists) in 68 games. He became the third defenseman of the NHL modern era (since 1943-44) to lead rookies in scoring (outright or tied), joining Bobby Orr (1966-67) and Brian Leetch (1988-89).

They said it

"I'm 100 percent sure playoff hockey, [Markstrom is] made for that. He likes big games. He wants it. That's what you want in your goalie. But until you get there, I can see why people will talk about it. That's OK too. But we've got a lot of faith in [Markstrom]." -- coach Travis Green

Projected lineup

J.T. Miller -- Elias Pettersson -- Tyler Toffoli

Tanner Pearson -- Bo Horvat -- Brock Boeser

Loui Eriksson -- Adam Gaudette -- Jake Virtanen

Micheal Ferland -- Jay Beagle -- Brandon Sutter

Quinn Hughes -- Christopher Tanev

Alexander Edler -- Troy Stecher

Oscar Fantenberg -- Tyler Myers

Jacob Markstrom

Thatcher Demko