The NHL season is still young, but the Vancouver Canucks have seen their playoff odds plummet just two months in.
At the start of the season, MoneyPuck gave the Canucks a hefty 80.4% chance at making the postseason. This made sense as the team was coming off an incredible 2023-24 season that saw them finish first in the Pacific Division with a 50-23-9 record and 109 points. That ranked as the third-best season in franchise history.
It was always going to be difficult to replicate last year’s performance, but the expectation was that they would easily get into the playoffs once again. Well, after a rocky 12-7-3 start, the Canucks have seen their MoneyPuck playoff odds plummet down to 52.7%.
Playoff odds as of December 1st https://t.co/RbnckCLHNP pic.twitter.com/pXt7kqVttq
— MoneyPuck.com (@MoneyPuckdotcom) December 1, 2024
The next highest team above the Canucks is the struggling New York Rangers, who sit at 57.4%, while the next lowest is the Boston Bruins at 45.1%. This puts the Canucks smack-dab in the middle of a few bubble teams hoping to eventually punch their ticket to the postseason.
When it comes to the Pacific Division, the Canucks are fourth in MoneyPuck’s playoff odds model behind the LA Kings (90.8%), Edmonton Oilers (87.8%), and the Vegas Golden Knights (85.1%). Vancouver does hold an edge over the Calgary Flames (25.5%).
A glance at the NHL standings may make these odds seem confusing. After all, the Canucks are just a single point back of the Flames and Oilers with multiple games in hand. MoneyPuck takes an overall look at the season to determine these odds, taking the remaining schedule, roster strength, and a bevy of advanced statistics to plot out the most likely path for each team.
Right now, that model is somewhat iffy on the Canucks when compared to the Oilers, Kings, and Golden Knights.
It may not be where Canucks fans want to see their team with the calendar rolling into December, but the good news is that there is still lots of time to get those odds rolling back up in the right direction.