LOSS OF MOTTE'S A PROBLEM

Injury will test Canucks' depth, grit

Tyler Motte is accustomed to being the hammer that drives the nail.

However, a high hit that the Vancouver Canucks' winger absorbed April 29 in Toronto is having a lasting effect on the speedy and feisty fourth-liner. He will miss training camp and his undisclosed injury will be re-evaluated in three weeks.

Motte was sidelined for the final 12 games of the compacted 202021 NHL season.

Maple Leafs defenceman Timothy Liljegren put a shoulder into the chin of the charging winger, who was sent sprawling. Motte hit the ice hard, appeared dazed by the impact and didn't return.

Nearly five months later, speculation is that he suffered a concussion, shoulder or neck injury from the whiplash effect of the blow.

The setback is significant for the Canucks.

Motte has a small frame, but his gritty play has a big effect. His willingness to compete promotes injury, however, from shot blocks and aggressive forechecking.

Motte was limited to 24 games last season by two injuries — he missed 17 games with an ankle injury in a Feb. 6 sideboards collision in Toronto with Leafs winger William Nylander — and had lingering effects after contracting the coronavirus.

The fearless fourth-liner still led the club in hits (100) and was tied for second in blocks among forwards (28). It's why Motte was named the club's unsung hero for his presence, penalty-killing effectiveness and strength on the puck, with just five giveaways.

That's hard to replace. Motte, 26, is in the final year of a two-year, US$2.45-million extension.

In the interim, the Canucks could shuffle their fourth-line formation or look elsewhere for an affordable and veteran winger as insurance in case Motte's absence is prolonged.

Brandon Sutter could be slotted between Matthew Highmore on left wing and a right-side option such as Zack MacEwen or rookie Will Lockwood, but coach Travis Green may want a more veteran presence and a penalty-kill specialist in hopes of a fast start on a six-game road trip to open the regular season.

Motte worked well with Sutter, but Jay Beagle and Antoine Roussel were traded to the Arizona Coyotes in the off-season. And the Canucks prefer Bo Horvat and J.T. Miller to concentrate on offence and not killing penalties.

Winger Phillip Di Giuseppe, 27, was signed in the off-season to a one-year, two-way deal that pays the league minimum of US$750,000 at the NHL level. He has logged 201 career games with the Carolina Hurricanes, Nashville Predators and New York Rangers. Di Giuseppe has never scored more than seven goals in an NHL season.

The Canucks also signed a similar player to Motte in feisty forward Sheldon Dries, 27, who's also on a one-year, two-way deal at US$750,000. Dries has killed penalties during his 48 career games with the Colorado Avalanche. Nic Petan, 26, is on a similar one-year, two-way contract and has played 136 NHL games, split between the Winnipeg Jets and the Maple Leafs.

Canucks general manager Jim Benning is also talking to a number of players about a professional tryout offer. On Tuesday, the Arizona Coyotes offered a PTO to winger Alex Galchenyuk; the Detroit Red Wings did likewise with Bobby Ryan and the New York Islanders with Erik Gustafsson. That brought the leaguewide total to 23 invitations.

The loss of Motte will hurt, especially if the Canucks return to the playoffs. As good as Motte has been in the regular season to do the grunt work and chip in occasionally — he had nine goals in 2018-19 — he's even better in the post-season.

In the 2020 playoff bubble at Edmonton, he had consecutive twogoal games to help eliminate the defending Stanley Cup champion St. Louis Blues from title contention in an opening-round matchup. He also logged a career-high 24:17 in a 3-2 overtime loss in Game 3 of that series, in which he had four shots, seven hits, four blocked shots, three giveaways and two take-aways.

In the heat of that battle, Green responded to a query about Motte's effectiveness and didn't hold back.

“At times, I've been asked why he's in the lineup, but man, this guy is an important part of our team,” he started. “He goes to a lot of the hard areas — especially against a team like St. Louis — because you have to fight for space and it's not just about the PK with him.

“He does a lot of things five-onfive that go unnoticed and really helps relieve and create pressure on the other team. In playoff hockey every year, you need guys to provide certain parts of the game and he does that.”

Overtime: Elias Pettersson reportedly has joined teammate Quinn Hughes in Michigan, where the restricted free agents have been skating and working out as they await contract extension solutions.