NHL teams
Doug Mittler, ESPN.com 7y

Ultimate Standings: Canucks in triple digits for second year

NHL, Vancouver Canucks

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Vancouver Canucks

Overall: 116
Title track: 111
Ownership: 90
Coaching: 114
Players: 107
Fan relations: 106
Affordability: 121
Stadium experience: 115
Bang for the buck: 112
Change from last year: -3

The Canucks' free fall down our standings continues. Vancouver was No. 43 as recently as 2011, when they lost to the Boston Bruins in the Stanley Cup final. They repeated as Presidents' Trophy winners the following season but still tumbled to 92 in 2012 -- and only continued to slip every year since.


What's good

Next to nothing. The product on the ice is terrible; the Canucks haven't won a playoff series since that gut-wrenching finals loss, and they missed the postseason entirely in two of the last three years. They're in the triple digits in every category but ownership ... which ranks No. 90. Not good. Loui Eriksson was a nice summer pickup, and the classy Sedin twins remain the faces of the franchise. But they also just turned 36 and are nearing the end of their Cup-less careers.


What's bad

Just about everything. The Canucks play in the soulless 21-year-old Rogers Arena, which provides one of the worst stadium experiences in professional sports (115th overall). And Vancouver fans, who have never seen their team win a title in 45 NHL seasons, pay more than all but one of the 122 other teams in the four major leagues for the privilege. That's an awful combination. Have we mentioned the team yet? They're second-worst in hockey in title track and coaching and fourth worst in players. Considering all that, it's not hard to understand how only two NHL franchises (the Bruins and Maple Leafs) provide less bang for the buck.


What's new

Fan relations dropped 12 spots from a year ago - not surprising given that the Canucks offer the least frequent promotions, contests and giveaways in the NHL. And third-year bench boss Willie Desjardins clearly isn't inspiring much confidence around British Columbia after winning just 31 out of 82 games in 2015-16, with coaching slipping 22 places. At 114th, Desjardins is only six spots better than John Tortorella -- who lasted just one disastrous season in Vancouver -- was after being run out of town in 2014.

Next: Toronto Maple Leafs  | Full rankings

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