Hell Yes. Naslund getting his jersey retired

Vancouver is full of haters, you’d think the majority of the citizens of this town would’ve attended Dave Chappelles All Haters Ball. I’ve always been a staunch supporter of Markus Naslund, he was a very exciting player, had a huge impact on the community, was a great team guy, and did a ton for the Canucks.

He won the Lester Pearson trophy, was a game away from the Art Ross, won the teams Cyclone Taylor award five times, and holds or shares franchise records for the Vancouver Canucks in goals, points, hat-tricks, and single season points by a left winger. The biggest knock against him? He didn’t bring playoff success to this city. No one player in this city has been the brunt of more criticism and blame for a teams failure than Markus Naslund. He is likely the most underrated, under appreciated, athletes to ever play in this town. But, on December 12th, justice will be served. Markus Naslund’s number 19 will rise to the rafters, when the team retires his number.

Playoff success should not merit a jersey retirement, and I believe that there likely shouldn’t be another jersey retired in this city for quite a while. People bring up Pavel Bure, but at the end of the day, Pavel Bure left on not the best of terms, and he played for quite a few other teams. Markus Naslund, although got his start in Pittsburgh, and finished off his career with a season in New York, was synonymous with the Vancouver Canucks.

His leadership was quiet, he had an inner confidence, that cracked right at the end as the entire city seemed to weigh down on him. Nobody bothered to mention that during his glory years with the Canucks, they had Dan Cloutier in net, nor the fact that at the end of one of his absolute best seasons, he broke his leg in Buffalo. But, at the end of the day, what the hell do people know? Number 19 belongs in rafters.