Vineault getting fired is the best thing that could've happened to Tanev. AV pigeon holed him from the beginning as a strictly defensive d-man and rarely let him play in the offensive zone. Under Torts his TOI has increased and so has the quality of the opponents he faces. He's killing it on the PK (it's no coincidence Vancouver has the top PK in the league) and I wouldn't be surprised if he ends up on the PP before long.
Great article about Tanev:
Chris Tanev, the player said to have no offensive side to his game, suddenly is tied for the goal-scoring lead among Canucks defencemen.
The young blue-liner, who turned 24 on Friday, put an exclamation mark on the Canucks' difficult 2-1 win over the Winnipeg Jets at Rogers Arena Sunday by scoring his fourth of the season on a seeing-eye wrist shot from the mid-slot to break a 1-1 tie halfway through the third period.
Tanev cruised into some open ice after Zack Kassian picked up his own rebound behind the net and put it into the slot to the wide-open D-man.
"I was just sort of lingering around at the top of the circles and Kass made a great play to get that out to me," said Tanev. "It seemed like the seas parted when I shot it, so it was awesome."
Tanev, who made his debut in the NHL three seasons ago showing great passing skills and a less-than-fearsome shot, is tied for the team lead in goals with defence partner Dan Hamhuis and Jason Garrison.
Tanev, who had 10 points in his first 92 NHL games over two partial seasons and the full lockout season, now has 12 points already in 39 games this season.
The difference? A physical late bloomer growing into a 6-foot-3 frame. And growing confidence, thanks to a new coach who puts a high value on defencemen who can move the puck creatively and have the instincts to know when to jump up into the play.
It didn't take long for incoming coach John Tortorella to pair Tanev with Hamhuis - something former coach Alain Vigneault tried down the stretch run in 2012, but then dropped it for the playoffs. But Tortorella has embraced the pairing - using them against the opposition's top line and playing them as much as possible with his own top six.
"He's maybe our best D-man joining the rush and reading plays," said Canucks captain Henrik Sedin.
Tortorella shocked few last week when he named the low-key Tanev as his best defenceman right now.
"He defended very well tonight," said Tortorella. "He had a good stick. He's chipped in some big goals and what goes unnoticed, I believe, is him getting us out of the end zone. We were a team that was struggling to get out of (our) zone tonight and Tans made some really good, subtle plays getting us out of there."
There's no question that Tanev is flourishing under Tortorella, after Vigneault seemed to have him typecast as a third-pairing player. After showing over the last couple of years that he can handle hard minutes in a shutdown role, Tanev's game is flourishing under Tortorella.
"Confidence definitely means a lot," said Tanev. "Especially now playing with Hammer (Hamhuis), I'm on the ice more with the twins and (Kesler) and (Higgins) and (Santorelli). When they give you the puck they expect you to make a play, so you've got to be confident and make a play. Hopefully, I'm getting better at it."
Tanev shows well in the advanced stats world, but just looking at his offence and the fact he's played the most penalty-kill minutes on the team, but hardly any on the power play and fewer than Yannick Weber, makes you wonder whether there isn't more there, as Tortorella might put it.
But that's just speculation at this point. Right now, it just looks like a good call when he opted to sign the one-year deal with the Canucks last summer when other options were looked at.
Yes, it's only halfway through the season, but the future is looking pretty good.
jjamieson@theprovince.com Twitter.com/jamiesoncanucks
http://www.theprovince.com/touch/story.html?id=9317539
