Improvement in the NHL is rarely lineal. A lot of good teams catch lightning in a bottle, and make a magical run to the playoffs--only to slump backward in the next season.
In 2023-24 just about everything that could go 'right' for the Canucks, fell into place. This year, the polar opposite. Untimely injuries; dressing-room dysfunction; and a general malaise with the kind of dump and chase hockey that Tocchet favors.
The same thing happened to the Devils last year. After making the playoffs the year before, everything went south. A string of devastating injuries and some substandard goaltending, and they were back in lottery land. But this year they're a sure playoff bet in the East.
So this probably just isn't the Canucks year. The retool has to continue. I suspect Wilander, D-Petey, Lekkerimaki and maybe even Raty crack the lineup next season.
They'll move out a few of their UFA's for useful pieces at the TDL, And with oodles of cap space, the Canucks can really go big game hunting at the July 1st UFA day. They're actually in a better place than the gloom and doom would suggest.