Vancouver Canucks eye return to the playoffs after miserable 2015-16 campaign
VANCOUVER — There won’t be any mixed messages coming from the Vancouver Canucks this season.
After spending a couple of years trying to nurture young talent while remaining competitive, the club has one goal in 2016-17 — a return to the playoffs.
Getting there, however, could prove to be a big challenge.
“There’s always a lot of ‘ifs’ when you’re trying to develop guys and maybe rebuild a little bit or retool,” said Canucks captain Henrik Sedin. “You need guys to develop and that’s not always easy. You look at guys early on and you think: ‘He’s going to be a No. 1 centre or a first-line player or a second-line player,’ but it’s not always going to be that way.