Are the Canucks really as bad as people think?

We have finally seen one night’s worth of games in the 2026-27 NHL season, which means it’s time to overreact to small samples. Is Gavin McKenna a bust? Will goaltending sink the Edmonton Oilers‘ season? And maybe, just maybe, are the Vancouver Canucks not completely terrible?

The Canucks authored Tuesday’s most surprising result, riding multi-point nights from forwards Paul Cotter, Max Sasson, and defenseman Filip Hronek to snag a 6-5 overtime win over the Oilers. Many considered Vancouver to be worst team in the NHL coming into the year, and picked them to finish with the league’s worst points total for the second consecutive season. While that could still very well be the case, their opening night road victory could signal that Manny Malhotra’s team is better than we realize.

On Wednesday’s episode of Daily Faceoff LIVE, hosts Tyler Yaremchuk and Carter Hutton wondered if the Canucks are still likely to be the worst team in the NHL.

Tyler Yaremchuk: The Canucks are the betting odd favorites to come dead last in the NHL this year. Did they change your opinion of them last night, Hutts? What percentage chance is there that the Canucks still come in dead last?

Carter Hutton: I think there’s a good percentage. I still think it’s like a 30% chance. I don’t know if (Kevin) Lankinen can carry the mail with (Thatcher) Demko out. I do think the fact that they have younger bodies injected in the lineup under Manny Malhotra, there’s going to be a step forward. I don’t think they’re just going to be horrible and walk right into that position, but they’re going to be in a tough spot when you start thinking about 84 games and the depth that they have.

You can catch the full discussion and the rest of Wednesday’s episode here…