Since February 1, the Canucks have the ninth-best point total in the NHL. The Maple Leafs have played well enough to rank 13th. Pretty good for the Canucks, but not so amazing for the Leafs.

Is it all because of the coaching change for Vancouver, maybe a more defensive structure, or could it even be the relief of knowing the team can just go and play retool hockey? It might be all of those things but the Canucks aren’t playing “new coach bump” hockey, they’re a different team entirely.

So how did they get there and does it even matter?

It took until their last game against the Stars to get the team PK to 70% for the first time this season and that’s a big deal for a team that couldn’t keep the puck out of their own net when they drew penalties for the first two months of the year. Tightening up the PK has been a big reason they’re not giving away games not to mention the goaltending they’ve received from Thatcher Demko since his return and the recent play of Collin Delia.

Vancouver’s defensive play should be applauded under Adam Foote and Sergei Gonchar and obviously at the top from Rick Tocchet; they’ve allowed the sixth-fewest shots on net since the turn of the calendar to February. Fewer shots allowed means the puck is staying away from the net. Simple math.

J.T. Miller seems to have found a spark under Tocchet which many had hoped would happen with the new coach. Miller has exploded for 8 goals and 9 assists in his last 11 games with the Arizona game being the only one he was held pointless in that run. He’s comfortable being relied upon with a bit of pressure taken off now that Bo Horvat has moved to Long Island.

What about Elias Pettersson? He’s eclipsed his goals, assists, points, and shot totals, and yet his production on the power play is the lowest* of his career.

*2020/21 was played against the Canadian division only and had a limited schedule.

I’d love to dive into the Demkos, Hughes, and, yes even Boeser but the one guy that the Canucks went all-in with, Andrei Kuzmenko has been 100% as advertised and could be a catalyst for the team’s success going forward.

Kuzmenko is on pace to hit 40 goals in his first season in the NHL and he’s making it look easy. He’s making it look fun and in under one full season with the Canucks, he may have cemented himself in “the core”.

On the power play, its goals or bust for Kuz looking at his 12 PPG so far. He’s so valuable already to the Canucks and it’s anyone’s guess as to what his ceiling is going forward.

It hasn’t been ALL superstar success for the Canucks since Tocchet took over; there have been tertiary producers (that’s third after secondary) that have taken control of their opportunities.

Look at the guys circled above: they’re dirt cheap and proving valuable to a team that needs to be razor-thin in cap costs on the bottom six. We said it at the end of last season

The Canucks seem to be building an identity, something Elias Pettersson mentioned in his post-game win over the Blackhawks on Sunday night. At the beginning of the year, it felt like this team had regressed to something that barely resembled an NHL team. There had to be tension in that locker room with the understanding that something had to give for things to change.

They changed alright, and now it’s all but certain Vancouver will not be in the running for the first-overall pick; they might even make the playoffs.

OK, just kidding… but seriously.

If the Canucks keep up their current pace which is asking A LOT, there is a path to a very unlikely playoff appearance. Stranger things have happened.

What does this all have to do with the Leafs? Nothing actually, but their fans always feel they need to be mentioned.