VANCOUVER — The Vancouver Canucks aren’t getting any playoff games this spring, but Linus Karlsson has been playing them all season.
When the rookie winger went to training camp in Penticton last fall he did not have a roster spot on the Canucks nor a contract beyond this season. Subject to waivers after spending most of the last three seasons in the American Hockey League, Karlsson wasn’t even sure which National Hockey League organization he’d be part of come October.
“I try to see every game as a Game 7,” Karlsson said after practising with the Canucks Friday at the University of B.C. “I’m trying to stick in the lineup. That’s actually my thought before every game: do everything you can to stay in the lineup. I mean, now I feel like I have a maybe a little (longer) leash, but still that’s my mentality — try to think like it’s a Game 7.”
While the Canucks have lost a mountain of games this season to plummet to the bottom of the NHL, Karlsson has kept advancing.
The 26-year-old’s 13th goal of the season in Thursday’s 6-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning moved Karlsson to fifth in Canucks scoring with 30 points, one ahead of Evander Kane, who has logged 400 minutes more of playing time. Karlsson is 10 points (in 700 minutes) behind Elias Pettersson.
Given all the upheaval and disappointment around the Canucks this season, you have to look pretty hard to see how good Karlsson’s season has been.
Nothing about him is flashy. He is not fast, but heavy on his stick and tenacious along the boards. He has the size and disposition to win puck battles and get to the front of the opposition net, where he has scored nearly all of his goals, including the rebound he bunted in against Tampa.
On a team whose goal differential is minus-76 in 68 games, Karlsson leads the Canucks in five-on-five shot-share (52.3 per cent) and expected-goals-for (54.1) while getting crushed by the lowest on-ice save percentage (82 per cent) on the team.
The right winger is 10th in NHL rookie scoring, albeit as the oldest freshman eligible for the Calder Trophy, despite an average time-on-ice of 11:53 that is the lowest among the top 36 rookies.
Canucks coach Adam Foote has lately been using Karlsson and linemates Teddy Blueger and Max Sasson to match up against the opposition’s top line.
“I saw a lot of reports — and me and him were talking about this going into this year — saying that his skating wasn’t at the NHL level,” Sasson, Karlsson’s friend and AHL linemate, said Friday. “And I just think those people had never watched him because the things he does on the ice is incredible.
“Karly does things that I think very few players want to do. He’s unbelievable on the walls, he loves getting in front of the net, loves getting in the dirty areas. You know, it’s something that a lot of players think they want to do, but Linus actually does it every single night. Honestly, in my opinion, he’s been one of our best players throughout the whole year. So consistent. And I’m so happy for him.”
Karlsson not only made the Canucks out of camp but his strong first half earned the former third-round pick a two-year, $4.5-million-US contract extension on Jan. 2. He immediately began a goals slump, scoring just once in the next 22 games.
But Karlsson seems to have been rejuvenated by the NHL’s Olympic break, and has six points in his last eight games.
“I think everyone needed that break,” Karlsson said. “This year’s schedule being crazy, like, we played every (second) day for 38 days or whatever it was, I mean, it’s been different.
“The thing with those games (when I wasn’t scoring), I felt like I played pretty good. Of course, you can think, ‘Oh, I didn’t score for a while.’ But honestly, I felt like I played pretty good. And when I feel like I’m playing good and I create chances, I know eventually the puck’s going to go in again. I’m pretty confident in myself in that way. If I don’t score, that’s not a big thing for me. I’m trying to find other ways to help. I want to be a good two-way forward, strong on the puck. I don’t always need to score. I’m just trying to help the team to win.”
Acquired from the San Jose Sharks for prospect Jonathan Dahlen in 2019, Karlsson had 26 goals and 46 points in 52 games for Skelleftea in his final season in the Swedish Hockey League before coming to North America in 2022.
He steadily built out his pro game with the Abbotsford Canucks, becoming a point-per-game minor-leaguer who scored 14 times in 26 playoff games a year ago to help the AHL team win the Calder Cup.
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Karlsson’s strengths, his boardwork and netfront presence, were skills that always looked transferable to the NHL level. But his challenge now is to keep progressing by further elevating his offensive game so that he can play in Vancouver’s top six instead of the bottom six.
With the Canucks still early in their rebuild — and with more top prospects on defence than up front — there should be opportunity in Vancouver for Karlsson.
“It’s been tough,” he said of this season. “Team-wise, we’ve lost a lot of games, and a lot of things happened. I try to focus on my game, try not to think about the things going on around us. I think I can still do better, but I’m pretty happy how I played for most of the year. I think I’ve been pretty good if I have one bad game or two bad games, then I get back to it.
“You never know before the season starts what kind of role you get, and I was just trying to take it day by day and work hard every day and try to be in a lineup. And, of course, you’re always playing for a new contract. Like, every player (on an expiring contract) is playing for a new contract. I’m lucky to sign that two-year deal here. I love to play here. Of course, I’m happy for my success, but everyone wants to win, and that’s something we need to bring for next year.”
Whenever the Canucks do get to play another Game 7, it feels like Karlsson will be part of it.
The St. Louis Blues visit Rogers Arena on Saturday.
