Realistically, the canucks are only 2 RHD away from being a contender. Our forward group is stacked, we have a franchise goalie. All that’s left is to improve defense

You could say the exact same thing about Horvat. Last season Pettersson, Boeser, Hoglander all had down seasons. With them bouncing back, I don’t see why Horvat can’t maintain 30 goals

I agree that we have a very good #1 goalie, I would also say we are 2 RD away from having a good blueline (keeping in mind that RD are the hardest asset to acquire in hockey and we have none in our prospect system), I disagree with our forward group being stacked, it's not bad but I wouldn't call it stacked. If/when Miller is traded we have one average first line winger, one second line winger and a glut of middle six wingers.

Without Miller:

Hoglander-Pettersson-Boeser
Podkolzon-Horvat-Kuzmenko
Mikheyev-Karlsson-Garland

I honestly don’t know what else you want us to do with our forward group. We have so many good forwards that are all young with lots of potential. Our oldest player in our top 9 would be 27. Hoglander, Podkolzin have a lot of growing to do and become very good. This is a very good forward group, I don’t know what else you want us to do. Sure it would be nice to add a 100 point winger but we don’t really need that because we have crazy winger depth.

To answer your question, "I honestly don’t know what else you want us to do with our forward group", I don't think there is much that can be done currently. There's no cap space, not many assets to move to improve, and if there were assets to move it shouldn't be for a winger.

I agree there is potential for growth, but I definitely wouldn't call that a stacked group.
Here's my analysis of the groups of wingers that you listed:

Boeser - average first line winger.
Hoglander - was starched plenty last year and is currently a 3rd line player. Better chance he plays games in the AHL this year than solidifies himself as a 2nd line player. I think he has decent (2nd line) mid term potential.
Podkolzon - great potential, has good chance at being a second line player by some point next season. Currently a good 3rd line player.
Kuzmenko- fairly unknown. Most insiders I read/listen too expect him to score in the 10-15 goal range and 30- 35 point range this year. Projected as a 3rd line player for this season.
Mikheyev - fringe 2nd line winger, could solidly 2nd line status this season.
Garland - second line player.

Side note, Karlsson is not NHL ready. He may play some NHL games this year but he's definitely not a 3C or even a 4th line player right now. I would also say Pearson is a solid 3rd line winger that wasn't listed.

The wings have depth, but I would again wouldn't call them "stacked".

At their peak, they could be stacked. Definitely above average

In my opinion, they have the potential to be a good group due to their overall depth and some young pieces that could improve, but as of now they are at best slightly above average due to a lack of top end talent. To me stacked would be a top 9 group like COL, STL, or MIN had last year.

Most? You think? Wrong.

The only thing that can slow down his game is if his back gets worse. He plays that style where those guys wear out by 31-32.



Their own version only better because he’s locked up on a team-friendly contract for 4 years.

Nope, Horvat has vastly outproduced Jenner in terms of career point totals AND scoring rates. Don't kid yourself

No, Horvat will still be in his prime in his early 30's when the team is ready to contend. This team will be a legit contender in no more than 3 years time. They aren't a full rebuild away from contending

You didn't even mention the center depth. Plus, if Miller is traded, the Canucks will probably get at least one good roster player back in return, most likely either a 2nd pairing defenseman or a middle six forward

Karlsson probably doesn't make the team next season, meaning if Miller is traded, it will most likely be Dickinson back in the 3C spot, and he'll get every chance to bounce back

Without Miller, you could call them just above average, but with Miller, they're stacked

Vancouver would legit be in the contender conversation if we had 2 bonafied top four RD, their blueline with Myers and Schenn as the 1 and 2 RD is slightly below average at worst. Their back end is not even close to bottom five in the league

Statistically speaking Horvat being in his prime in his early 30's unlikely. I don't think he will be a poor player in this 30's but he's very likely passed his prime.



The center depth wasn't mentioned because the initial conversation had to do with a group of "stacked" wingers. Center depth is no doubt a strength of this team.



I agree with this.



Miller makes a significant difference. I would still be hesitant to call them stacked, but they would be well above average.



I think they could contend if they had a top pairing RD and another second pairing RD, assuming Miller is still in the lineup and Demko stays healthy. With that said, how are they just going to go out and obtain two top 4 RD without significantly altering their roster or gutting an already severely depleted prospect pipeline? Assets they can part with, cap space and the high cost for RD doesn't make it likely they can attain those assets, which is why it hasent already happened.

Myers can play 2nd pair RD if the Canucks had another better RD, that could arguably be enough to contend. Myers has shown at the very least he's capable of more than your run of the mill 3rd pair RD

I will admit calling Vancouver's winger depth stacked is a bit of a projection, but I believe it's a projection that is more likely than not to break right. I can still see Horvat being a 30 goal scorer in his 30's, he's not slowing down any time soon