Filip Chytil will return to the Canucks lineup at some point, and when he does, Manny Malhotra has some real decisions to make.
One Vancouver voice put it well: when healthy, Chytil's "size and his speed" bring "some things that are badly in need on this roster."
The catch is the word healthy. He played just 10 games in 2023-24 and 12 last season, and as the same voice put it, "we know the history for him."
When he does play, the upside is real. Chytil put up 22 goals and 45 points in 74 games for the Rangers in 2022-23.
The bigger question is up the middle. It feels a lot like last season, with Vancouver still chasing the right mix of centres.
Malhotra has already been tinkering. Marco Rossi slid to the wing beside Elias Pettersson at practice last week, giving the star a skilled playmaker on his line.
Elias Pettersson's linemate search drives the Canucks shuffle
Rossi has three goals and four points through four games. Pairing a creative passer with Pettersson makes sense, and the two have already connected on the power play.
Aatu Räty is back in the mix too, with a shorthanded goal in two games despite the hit he took from Kevin Bahl. He brings the faceoff skill Vancouver lacked against Edmonton.
Paul Cotter has four goals in four games and looks settled at centre. That leaves less room than it seemed a week ago.
Don't bank on Chytil. Build the lineup around Rossi, Cotter and Räty, and treat any healthy stretch from Chytil as a bonus rather than a plan.
Planning around him is like planning a picnic around a forecast that keeps changing. Pack the umbrella either way.
Chytil, 27, has 173 points in 405 NHL games. A real run of good health could let him slot anywhere from the second line down.
The Canucks are 2-2-0 and open a six-game road trip Thursday in Carolina.
It's only four games, and the moving parts keep moving. When Chytil returns, someone in that forward group loses a spot, and nobody seems ready to give one up.
Should the Canucks keep Marco Rossi on Elias Pettersson's wing?
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