"It is not a Tocchet thing": NHL analyst makes feelings known about Vancouver Canucks downfall after disappointing 'murderous row' road trip

NHL analyst David Amber shared his thoughts about the Vancouver Canucks following their disappointing five-game road trip that culminated in a heavy 6-1 defeat to the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday.

The Canucks are heading home with a 1-2-2 record from their five-game road trip, largely due to a lack of scoring and inconsistent defense. The disappointing performance has left them outside a playoff spot.

During their road trip, the Vancouver Canucks faced the rising Montreal Canadiens, three division leaders and a formidable Carolina Hurricanes, managing only one win during the tough stretch.

Amber emphasized that the team's results shouldn't be solely attributed to coach Rick Tocchet, as injuries and other issues have plagued the roster. On Sportsnet's Real Kyper & Bourne show, Amber described it as a 'murderous' trip (1:28:05 onwards):

"It was really tough road trip, right? Started Montreal, Carolina, Washington, Toronto and Winnipeg, right that's a murderous row.

"It is not a Tocchet thing, all the injuries, all the drama, he only (has) Demko start nine games this year.

"It is hard to win in those circumstances, and I wonder how much of it, Patrick Allvin and Jimmy Rutherford are saying it is circumstantial and if we get everyone healthy, they got Hronek back last night, Hughes and Pettersson, 'we are getting our guys together'..."

Amber suggested that the management should take the time to thoroughly assess the situation. He raised a critical question about whether the team's issues stem from internal drama and a lack of cohesion among players or if they are primarily due to injuries and other factors.

"If I am Allvin and the management group I'd be taking the time right now to really properly assess. You don't need to do anything in the future to March 7, but you have to ask yourself, is it the drama of this group and they just can't coexist, or is it injuries and circumstantial things that maybe they can find that magic. That's a big question," he added.

The Vancouver Canucks begin their three-game homestand against the LA Kings on Wednesday. The puck drops at 10 p.m. ET.

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The Vancouver Canucks are healthy again

The positive aspect for the Canucks is that, for the first time this season, they had their core group healthy. Elias Pettersson, J.T. Miller, Brock Boeser, Quinn Hughes, Filip Hronek and Thatcher Demko were all in the lineup together against the Jets.

Having their core players back in the lineup should give them a boost and help turn things around. The Vancouver Canucks (19-14-10) are fifth in the Pacific Division with 48 points.