Earlier today, we looked at what some of the major off-season publications had to say about the Maple Leafs; now it’s time to do the same with the Canucks.

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Poolers’ Guide Hockey

Projected Finish: 1st, Western Conference

The Report: Poolers’ Guide has a unique – and busy – design that at times makes comprehension more than a little challenging. Although Poolers’ Guide is a poolers’ guide (no kidding!) the magazine does devote significant space to both a recap of 2010-11 and a projection for 2011-12. Like a lot of the other magazines, this one spends tons of time on last season’s Stanley Cup Finals, but it also does a good job of listing the team’s strengths heading into 2011-12 – it is surprisingly comprehensive given the length.

Price: $9.99, Available online.

The Hockey News Yearbook

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Projected Finish: 1st, Western Conference

The Report: More than any of the other magazines, The Hockey News sees fluctuations in the strength of its team assessments; relying on individual beat reporters ensures knowledge of the team, but it also leads to differing levels of ability. Fortunately, Kevin Woodley possesses not just knowledge but also insight – while THN doesn’t allow the space for a rigorous analysis he effortlessly weaves through the strengths and weaknesses at every position. The Canucks’ analysis is one of the strongest pieces in the magazine.

Price: $9.99, Available online.

Hockey Prospectus 2011-12

Projected Finish: 2nd, Western Conference

The Report: The biggest of the hockey annuals clocks in at just under 500 pages, and spends anywhere from 11 – 14 on each team. Vancouver’s write-up is particularly long, at 14 pages, and features a comprehensive team essay (by Nations writer Kent Wilson), along with 30 individual player write-ups. More statistics-based than any of the other publications listed here, Prospectus is the only publication to use a stats-based team projection guide. Tom Awad’s VUKOTA system has been in place for two seasons now, and during that time has proven remarkably accurate – giving better projections than pretty much any of the other hockey annuals. Wilson goes over the team with a fine tooth comb, giving the best coverage available anywhere. Full disclosure: I worked on the Prospectus magazine, though not on the Canucks’ segment.

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Price: $9.90, Available online.

McKeen’s Hockey Pool Yearbook

Projected Finish: 2nd, Western Conference

The Report: Properly a pool yearbook rather than a general guide, McKeen’s spends half a page giving a brief overview of each team and then focuses on high-end scouting reports for the team’s most significant offensive players, top goaltender, and best prospects. The short team summary spends a lot of time on last season’s Finals series, and then takes a cursory look at the changes, although this may be excusable given that there aren’t a lot of question marks around Vancouver. The best part of the write-up, by far, however are the player profiles: comprehensive scouting reports that make the annual both unique and essential. Full disclosure: I received a copy of this publication for review purposes.

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Price: $7.99 at newsstands, $14.99 online.

Sporting News Hockey

Projected Finish: T-2nd, Western Conference

The Report: The Sporting News’ hockey annual is surprisingly strong overall, comparing well to other publications. The strengths/weaknesses list is somewhat at odds to the team write-up; on the one hand not many weaknesses are listed but on the other there was an obvious dissatisfaction with Mike Gillis’ stay-the-course philosophy.

Price: $9.99 at newsstands.

The Sports Forecaster

Projected Finish: 3rd, Western Conference

The Report: Another magazine that is technically more for fantasy hockey enthusiasts, Sports Forecaster has a three paragraph write-up for each team and then blurbs and projections for a wide range of players. I can summarize those three paragraphs in one sentence: the Canucks are a good team that lost to Boston, didn’t lose much over the off-season, and have a strong backup. Other than that, there are a bunch of decent player write-ups, but nothing essential.

Price: $9.99, Available online.

Nation Network Fantasy Hockey Primer

Projected Finish: N/A

The Report: As Canucks Army currently offers this magazine for sale, we will avoid editorial comment here and simply note what the magazine provides. No team write-up is included – just player projections along with some general articles. However, the fantasy projections are broad – 500-odd player write-ups, along with statistical data. Daniel Sedin, with 100 points, is projected as the Canucks’ leading scorer.

Price: $5.00, Available online.

The Hockey News Ultimate Fantasy Pool Guide

Projected Finish: N/A

The Report: THN’s other fall annual focuses specifically on hockey pools rather than broader league coverage. As a result, its team page offers just the basics: player point projections, top-10 prospects, and a single general overview of the team along with a depth chart and some statistical data. Aside from the team essay, the annual does offer a wealth of statistical data on the individual player pages, along with a brief blurb for 325-odd players (the magazine offers 500+ projections, but in-depth analysis only of the most important players). Draft guru Murray Townsend’s projections are typically more conservative than most publications – and consequently more realistic. He has Henrik Sedin leading the team in scoring with 92 points.

Price: $7.99, Available online.





