The Vancouver Canucks began this season as a team that could make some noise in the post season. But they have been hit hard by injuries (Dan Cloutier, Ed Jovonovski, Sami Salo, etc) and the team did not make any big trades at the deadline. The end result is that the Canucks currently have 78 points and sit in seventh spot in the Western Conference, only 2 points ahead of the ninth place Mighty Ducks of Anaheim. Rumours are running rampant that the team's chemistry has been detereorating to the point where the once Stanley Cup contenders could implode. Talk radio stations on the west coast are full of rumours that Todd Bertuzzi and Marcus Naslund are alienating themselves from the team.

Reports include the two (who are very good friends) not attending team events, asking for hotel rooms on different floors than the rest of the team and being non-responsive to their teammates on the bench. Canucks coach Marc Crawford has also been feeling the heat as his talented club continues to slump. Though the Sedin twins and Anson Carter have played very well together, neither Bertuzzi nor Naslund have scored a goal in their last 5 games. The line juggling and call-ups from their farm team (Manitoba Moose) have not have much of an impact either.

This alleged breakdown within the Canucks lockeroom brings up many questions on whether the team should have made more significant moves during the trade deadline. Since the incident with Steve Moore, Bertuzzi has just not been the player he once was. This was clearly seen during his sub-par performance at the Winter Olympics and his poor play has continued throughout the season. Moore's most recent filings of civil lawsuits against Bertuzzi and the Canucks in the provinces of Ontario and British Columbia continue to cast a shadow on his career. He must either find a way around/through these legal issues or the Canucks need to make a decision on how much longer they live with the ongoing distractions.