2009 Odds to win the Stanley Cup<\/strong>: 16\/1 Players Added<\/strong>: Michael Samuellson, Andrew Raycroft, Cody Hodgson, Christian Ehrhoff, Mathieu Schneider, Brad Lukowic Preview:<\/strong> Last season the Canucks had a team like one not seen in Vancouver in years. A team with the potential to win a cup, with a cycling system that embarrassed rivals as good as the Detroit Red Wings and the San Jose Sharks. They seemed to score goals at all the right moments, and climbed the standings quickly in the last quarter of the season. But Luongo\u2019s mid \u2013season injury woes and the fatigue of carrying the team on his shoulders (at least as far as the media and fans were concerned) seemed to crush him before the cup became a possibility.<\/p>\n It almost seemed during interviews he wasn\u2019t 100% committed to the Canucks, and had his eyes on a Stanley Cup no matter where he won it, but the contract extension he signed puts that theory to rest, and having the Sedin brothers sign similar contracts assures that they\u2019re ready to lead the Canucks to carry some of Luongo\u2019s weight. It\u2019s clear that since the team hit the golf course after being ousted in the second round, this team certainly has only made progress. At the 2009 trade deadline GM Mike Gillis stayed quiet because he was confident in the roster he had, and his moves only show small amounts of tweaking, and it\u2019s very clear by the signing of the three stars mentioned above that no major shakeup is what this team needs. In the offseason they\u2019ve bulked up on skilled defence, signing Ehrhoff and Schneider.<\/p>\n More importantly, by signing Raycroft in the offseason, they can afford not to wear out Luongo down the stretch.<\/p>\n The division itself has weakened in the last couple seasons, and Vancouver should have no problem winning a division banner this season, especially since it appears head coach Alain Vigneault lit a fire under players like Steve Bernier, Kyle Wellwood, and Mason Raymond to work on their weaknesses and fitness over the summer.<\/p>\n If number one prospect Cody Hodgson has followed suit the Canucks might have added more goal scoring, in case Burrows has trouble remaining as consistent as he was in the months leading up to the \u201909 playoffs.<\/p>\n The city itself will have the Olympics to keep them buzzing, and we can assume Luongo will be an integral part of any success Team Canada has, this could bode very well for the Canucks from February through to April, and with a healthy, younger defence a better playoff run than last year\u2019s can be expected.<\/p>\n
\n2009 Odds to win Conference<\/strong>: 9\/1<\/p>\n
\nPlayers Lost<\/strong>: Mathius Ohlund, Jason Labarbera<\/p>\n![\"Sports](\"http:\/\/www.bodogaffiliate.com\/resources\/ca-banners\/sportsbook\/square\/250x250\/250x250g-sportsbook.gif\")
<\/a><\/p>\n2009 NHL Predictions – Vancouver Canucks<\/h3>\n