Canucks failed by offense in loss to Golden Knights in West Second Round

The Vancouver Canucks were eliminated from the Stanley Cup Playoffs by the Vegas Golden Knights on Friday, losing 3-0 in Game 7 of the Western Conference Second Round at Rogers Place in Edmonton, the Western Conference hub city.

The Canucks were the No. 5 seed after defeating the St. Louis Blues in six games in the best-of-7 Western Conference First Round. Vancouver was the No. 7 seed in the Stanley Cup Qualifiers after finishing the regular season with a .565 points percentage (36-27-6).
Here is a look at what happened during the 2020 postseason for the Canucks and why things could be even better next season:

The Skinny

Potential unrestricted free agents: Tyler Toffoli, F; Chris Tanev, D; Oscar Fantenberg, D; Jacob Markstrom, G; Louis Domingue, G.
Potential restricted free agents: Jake Virtanen, F; Tyler Motte, C; Adam Gaudette, C; Zack MacEwen, C; Troy Stecher, D.
Potential 2020 NHL Draft picks: 5

What went wrong

Not enough offense: The Canucks averaged 24.1 shots per game to the Golden Knights' 39.0, and 2.00 goals per game to Vegas' 2.71. Vancouver ranked seventh (11.1 percent; 3-for-27) on the power play among the eight teams to reach the second round; they were fourth in the NHL (24.2 percent) during the regular season. In Game 7, Vancouver went 0-for-4, including a five-minute power play spanning the second and third periods, but the Canucks generated one shot on goal.
Game 4 letdown: Vancouver might look at the third period of Game 4 as its missed opportunity in this series. After the Canucks scored twice on 12 shots in the second period to take a 3-2 lead and grab momentum, the Golden Knights struck for three goals in a span of 5:37 early in the third period for a 5-3 win and a 3-1 series lead. Vegas outscored Vancouver 9-6 in the third period during the series.
Under siege:Jacob Markstrom led all playoff goalies with 491 shots against, including 141 against the Golden Knights (35.2 per game) before he was deemed unfit to play the final three games in the series. Markstrom finished with a 3.99 goals-against average and .894 save percentage in five games against Vegas. Thatcher Demko replaced Markstrom as the starter and faced 125 shots (41.7 per game) in three consecutive starts, including 48 in Game 6, when he posted his first career NHL shutout in a 4-0 win.

Reasons for optimism

Youth is served:The Canucks were paced all season by their emerging core. Elias Pettersson, their 21-year-old center, tied center J.T. Miller for their postseason scoring lead with 18 points (seven goals, 11 assists) and Quinn Hughes, their 20-year-old defenseman, leads all rookies in postseason scoring with 16 points (two goals, 14 assists). Hughes, a finalist for the Calder Trophy, awarded to the best rookie in the regular season, led NHL first-year players with 53 points (eight goals, 45 assists) and 25 power-play points (three goals, 22 assists) in 68 games. He became the third defenseman during the NHL modern era (since 1943-44) to lead rookie scorers (outright or tied), joining Bobby Orr (1966-67) and Brian Leetch (1988-89). Pettersson won the Calder Trophy last season.

Dominant Demko:The 24-year-old came through in the clutch, helping the Canucks rally from being down 3-1 in the series with his stellar play in goal during the final three games of the series. Demko was 2-1 with a 0.64 GAA and .985 save percentage in four postseason games (three starts), all against Vegas. He made 42 saves in his first NHL postseason start in Game 5, had a 48-save shutout in Game 6, and made 98 consecutive saves before Golden Knights defenseman Shea Theodore scored a power-play goal at 13:52 of the third period in the Game 7 loss.
Reinforcements coming: In addition to the young talent already on the roster, there's more on the way. Forwards Vasily Podkolzin (2019 NHL Draft, No. 10) and Nils Hoglander (2019, No. 40), defensemen Olli Juolevi (2016, No. 5) and Brogan Rafferty (free agent, 2019), and goalie Michael DiPietro (2017, No. 64) are several of the top prospects in the pipeline. Podkolzin tops the list after playing 30 games for SKA St. Petersburg in the Kontinental Hockey League, where he will likely spend one more season. The 19-year-old power forward scored five points (one goal, four assists) in seven games for second-place Russia at the 2020 IIHF World Junior Championship.