Goals and Expectations for Canucks’ Teddy Blueger in 2025-26

Like many Vancouver Canucks in 2024-25, Teddy Blueger was not immune to a regression of sorts.

The Latvian forward was a key piece in Vancouver’s bottom-six in 2023-24. Blueger centred one of the most potent third lines in the entire league, and was a big reason why the Canucks were able to roll a great forward group throughout the season and into the playoffs.

This past season saw him take a step back. While Blueger remained one of the better penalty killing options across the league – allowing just 10 goals in 172:50 shorthanded minutes – his offensive contributions shrank by a decent margin, including a massive 26-game goalless drought.

Still, it’s not like the Latvian is relied upon to be an offensive contributor. He more than held up his end of the bargain as a matchup duty forward, and at the age of 31, still provides a decent punch to this team’s bottom-six. So what should the goals and expectations be for Teddy Blueger in 2025-26?

Meeting Expectations: 20-25 points, continued defensive prowess

At this point in his career, Blueger is who he is – and that’s not a bad thing. Most teams would love to have someone like him in their bottom-six as someone who can eat away at minutes without being a liability and instead contribute to the team’s defensive efforts. Blueger has been used as a utility man throughout his tenure as a Canuck, and the hope is that he’ll continue to be that reliable depth presence.

As well, Blueger has shown the ability to contribute offensively. Hitting the 20-point mark is pretty reasonable for him, especially considering that he’s done so in five of the last six seasons. Even in that one season where Blueger didn’t, he put up 16 points in 68 games. It seems reasonable to expect Blueger to continue that trend with his deployment likely remaining the same going into 2025-26.

The hope is that he can produce more consistently instead of the hot and cold streaks he went on in 2024-25. Blueger will also be playing for Latvia at the 2026 Winter Olympics, and the impacts of that remain to be seen on his game as well. Will the motivation of playing for his country buoy his performances, or will the fatigue of the tournament wear down his play?

Exceeding Expectations: 30+ points, pushing into the second line 

We’ve seen these flashes and streaks where, with the right linemates, Blueger looks like a possible second-liner on a contending team. Now, ideally, he’s never put into that position, and the chances are low that he breaks out to become that calibre of player. But Blueger putting up 30-plus points and giving the Canuck middle-six a big offensive punch, coupled with his great defensive work, would constitute exceeding expectations.

It’s not overly far-fetched. That third line of Conor Garland-Blueger-Dakota Joshua was clicking on all cylinders in 2023-24. The trio put together a great run of games where their production outpaced Vancouver’s own first line, all the while remaining defensively responsible. That probably won’t be happening again. However, if Blueger could come close to that standard of play consistently, the Canucks would have found money on their hands, where the Latvian isn’t being forced higher up in the lineup but forcing himself into conversations for more deployment.

Below Expectations:15 points, fourth-liner, PK liability

One player does not define a penalty kill, but Blueger taking a step back in that department would really hurt the team. The biggest strength he brings to the forward group is his ability on special teams, and if he were to lose that versatility, it would severely hamper his value to the Canucks.

Not only that, but Blueger dropping in production further would only increase the alarm bells surrounding him. There haven’t been signs of age-based regression yet, but given the streaks that he was on last year, there is concern that the standard could be lowered going into 2025-26. And if that happens, Blueger would firmly be a fourth-liner that the Canucks might view as replacement level.

Making $1.8 million annually, Blueger’s cap hit wouldn’t be the worst thing in the whole world if he’s unable to reach these expectations. But ideally, one isn’t paying close to $2 million of the cap to a fourth-line centre. We’ve seen that experiment happen with the likes of Jay Beagle, and that didn’t end well for the franchise. For Blueger to drop to that level would definitely be a disappointment, and the only bright spot from that point would be the fact that he’s a free agent after this season.

Goals for Teddy Blueger in 2025/26

• Continue to be one of the Canucks’ best penalty-killing options
• Be more consistent in scoring points
• Be a viable option within the Canucks’ middle-six (ie, able to fill in the top-six in case of injuries)
• Develop chemistry with younger Canucks in the bottom-six
• Continue to bring energy and punch playing depth minutes

Blueger did a lot of good things last year. At this point in his career, the former Minnesota State Maverick provides a lot of veteran leadership to any group of forwards, and the Canucks are fortunate to have someone with his experience and toolset within their bottom-six. The main thing for him this season is to continue being the high-energy, defensively responsible player that he is, providing Vancouver with good penalty killing abilities to boot.

The hope is that Blueger won’t go as long without scoring as he did last year. Suppose his production is more consistent, even if the overall production doesn’t tick up too much. In that case, it gives the Canucks a much more reliable baseline to be playing off of instead of swinging so far in one direction or the other.

Most of all, however, Blueger can provide a lot of mentorship to the young Canuck players looking to push themselves into being full-time NHLers. The Latvian is a fantastic role player on any contending team, and many prospects could benefit from learning how to carve out a place for themselves in the big leagues. Not only would establishing chemistry help this season, but Blueger could help set the foundation for young, cheaper players on ELCs becoming contributors to help Vancouver maximize their cap space.