The Vancouver Canucks were yet again on the losing end of a home game on Saturday night in what has been a dreadful run at Rogers Arena this season.
For many teams around the league, playing on home ice is usually seen as an advantage. You’re more familiar with the rink, and you have the crowd on your side. Yet, for the Canucks, they have been terrible in front of their fans this season.
Through 15 games at home, the Canucks have managed to win just five and have a dismal record of 5-7-4 at Rogers Arena. It’s starting to become an issue for the club as they fight for a playoff spot,t and team president Jim Rutherford is well aware of it.
Rutherford appeared in last night’s After Hours segment with Scott Oake and Ray Ferraro, where he discussed the below-average results.
“We beat ourselves at home sometimes,” Rutherford said. “We don’t play with the same urgency at home; on the road, we seem to be more comfortable.
“We have some adjustments to make, obviously, but they are fixable. We better fix them quick because you can’t be a playoff team with a record like we have at home.”
“You can’t be a playoff team with the record we have at home.”
Jim Rutherford joins After Hours to talk about the Canucks and their consistency at home. pic.twitter.com/wPfnkYwuO0
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) December 15, 2024
It’s a stark dropoff from how the Canucks fared on home ice last season. Vancouver dominated at home with a torrid 27-9-5 record, among the best in the entire NHL. They were the only team other than the Edmonton Oilers to have less than ten regulation losses at home all season.
As we hit the holiday season, it is possible that they hit ten regulation losses at Rogers Arena before the new year. Rutherford added that it will be up to head coach Rick Tocchet to help right the ship.
“[Tocchet] does a terrific job; he’s been dealt a different hand this year than he was last year,” Rutherford said. “He’s had a lot more things to deal with, and I believe he’s done a really good job, and he’ll figure this out.”
The 75-year-old executive also mentioned that he believes the team will need to add a few more players, potentially through trade, if they want to give the Canucks every opportunity to go on a deep playoff run.
There is good news for Canucks fans in that the season is still relatively young, and the playoffs are still a very good possibility. Vancouver currently occupies the second wildcard spot in the West and is just three points behind the Oilers, third place in the Pacific.
They’ll get another chance to start building a better home record on Monday night when the Colorado Avalanche are in town.