Broken rib has power forward Virtanen on shelf for a month
Canucks winger down with a broken rib in latest setback of a tough slump since December
Jake Virtanen is out with a broken rib, suffered in a borderline hit by Ryan Getzlaf.
The Anaheim Ducks captain was clearly looking to set a neutral zone pick, creating a lane for Rickard Rakell, but went so much further in setting that pick.
He landed a penalty for interference, but despite the hit being head-high, the National Hockey League’s department of player safety, who dole out suspensions, didn’t bat an eye following the 1-0 Anaheim win last Wednesday.
For most observers, it was accidentally-on-purpose at best.
The busted rib now has the Canucks winger on the shelf for a month.
And the injury only piles on to what’s been a rough go of late for Virtanen. After setting a career high for goals on Dec. 11, the local hero has scored just twice in the three months since.
The story of this slump actually teaches us many things about where Virtanen is as a player and where he still needs to improve.
His second to last goal was scored on Dec. 20, a home game against the St. Louis Blues, when he was still on Bo Horvat’s wing. His last goal was on Feb. 2.
Horvat, the future captain, has played the toughest minutes of any centre in the NHL. Just a few seasons ago, Horvat was struggling with his defensive game, but this year he’s become a dynamo, doing everything he can, no matter who has been skating on his wing. Despite having played with a dozen different wingers this season and is still on pace for 60-plus points, a fine total for a No. 2 centre on a .500 hockey team.
Horvat is a strong offensive contributor and the numbers when Virtanen is playing alongside him reflect that. Together, they’re posting a respectable rate of both total shot attempts and scoring chances. (And overall, Virtanen has clearly been showing improvement in his passing game as well. Earlier this season, we noted how he’s actually shooting less, holding on to the puck more and looking for passing lanes more often.)
But in these heavy minutes, Horvat and Virtanen haven’t been a defensive triumph. Overall, Horvat’s actually done all right in his heavy minutes, except when Virtanen has been on his wing. When the duo are together on the ice, shot attempts against the Canucks have gone up.
So while Virtanen was producing with Horvat on his wing, his defensive game still needed work.
After Christmas, a large percentage of Virtanen’s ice time at even strength has been with
Brandon Sutter as his centre.
Sutter has never been an elite checking centre, and he’s not much of an offensive force, though he does have a handy wrist shot. But he did put a decent defensive season in 2017-18 and you can understand why, given his skill set, why the coach has chosen to focus him in on a shutdown role.
Sutter’s 2018-19, though, has been almost entirely forgettable. He missed two months earlier this season with a separated shoulder, an injury that one suspects has had a lasting effect on him since all the numbers for him since his return have shown a diminished player. His own shot rate is down, his faceoff percentage is down, the Canucks’ percentage of the shot attempts while he’s on the ice is down ... you get the picture.
It’s no wonder, then, that Virtanen’s scoring has fallen off as well.
With Sutter also now out indefinitely with a groin problem, you must also wonder how much his skating stride was suffering in recent games as well.
That said, when Virtanen returns to the lineup, his offensive talents shouldn’t be ignored. With Antoine Roussel now skating with Bo Horvat, some have suggested that Virtanen would do well if he were put back with that pair.
The other option, given how well he’s done skating in softer minutes with the likes of Markus Granlund and Adam Gaudette as his centre, is to look to the future, one where the Canucks have enough forward depth to move toward a three-attacking-line, one-defensive-line setup and have Virtanen as the key winger on such a third-line trio.