In three of his four National Hockey League seasons, Pius Suter has scored 14 goals. In his other year, he exploded for 15. It’s pretty safe to say the 28-year-old Swiss forward is consistent. In his first season with the Vancouver Canucks in 2023-24, Suter scored 14 times, added 15 assists and demonstrated versatility that allowed him to fill a variety of roles. He did it all for the very team-friendly price of $1.6M which is what he’ll cost against the cap again next season.

With the departure of Elias Lindholm in free agency, Suter may find himself asked to shuffle back to centre which is where he was slated to play at the outset of last season. However, as the year unfolded, Suter was deployed more as a top six winger primarily on a line with JT Miller and Brock Boeser and he brought diligence and defensive acumen to that position. While he wasn’t counted on to produce at a high level, Suter was in the right place at the right time to score the only goal in the Canucks 1-0 victory that dispatched Nashville from the opening round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Pius Suter: Exceeding expectations in 2024-25

Suter seems like a coach’s dream – a hard-working, low maintenance professional who shows up and does whatever is asked of him. Next season, the Canucks may ask Suter to centre the team’s third line between Dakota Joshua and Conor Garland. Some may recall that’s where he started last season before suffering a groin injury in mid-November that kept him out of the line-up for more than a month.

During his time on the shelf, Suter watched as Teddy Blueger stepped into his spot and quickly found chemistry with Joshua and Garland. It was a spot Suter never really returned to. If he starts next season in that position, Suter has enough offence in his game to blend nicely with those other two. The potential is there for all three of those players to level up offensively. Is there enough pop in his game for Suter to challenge for 20 goals? That may be a stretch, but it would certainly qualify as exceeding expectations.

One way Suter could boost his offensive output is as the centre on a more potent second power play unit. While the best case scenario for the hockey club is for the first unit to find its groove again, the Canucks should have a second unit that could feature the likes of Suter, Garland, Joshua, Daniel Sprong, Nils Höglander or Danton Heinen and Filip Hronek. That is a clear upgrade on a group that included Ilya Mikheyev, Sam Lafferty and Teddy Blueger for stretches last season.

It may be shooting for the moon, but best case scenario for Pius Suter would be a 20-goal/45 point season in which he also contributes to both special teams on a team that pushes for a second straight Pacific Division title.

Pius Suter: Meeting expectations in 2024-25

As Canucks fans saw last season, Suter quietly goes about his business. There isn’t a lot  of flash to his game. But he demonstrates a high hockey IQ on a nightly basis and puts himself in good positions to make plays at both ends of the ice. The team will need more of that from Suter again next season.

If he settles in as the third line centre, the Canucks will need at a bare minimum, the same sort of production he provided last season. In his four NHL campaigns, Suter has never finished above 50% on face-offs in a single season and last year was successful on 49.3% of his draws. If he’s going to take on additional penalty killing duties, that is an area of his game he could stand to improve. As well, while versatile enough to fill gaps throughout the line-up, with limited centre depth on the roster this season, does Suter have enough offence in his game to plug a hole in the event of injury to JT Miller or Elias Pettersson?

Pushing up the lineup might help Suter achieve some of his offensive targets, but it’s probably not in the best interest of the hockey club to have Suter as one of its top two centres for a prolonged period of time. That won’t be on Suter’s mind to start the season.

He’ll be focused on being a smart, strong two-way centre that can feed off the chemistry already in place with Dakota Joshua and Conor Garland. That line has plenty of potential to give the Canucks an edge on a lot of nights. Suter doesn’t need to be a star in that role. To meet expectations, he simply needs to replicate the kind of season he had last year.

Pius Suter: Below expectations in 2024-25

After winning the Pacific Division regular season title last year, the Canucks aren’t going to sneak up on anybody in 2024-25 and will instead get the best that other teams have to offer. Pius Suter didn’t exactly blow the hockey world away with his performance in the playoffs.

His big goal in Nashville was one of just two goals he scored in the postseason and he managed just a single assist. The concern has to be that when the going gets tough, is there more to Suter’s game than he showed in his first taste of Stanley Cup Playoff action? The Canucks know what Teddy Blueger accomplished when he played between Joshua and Garland and that trio formed arguably the best third line in hockey for a long stretch. With that in mind, there is some pressure on Suter to make the most of his opportunity if he starts on a line with Joshua and Garland.

Alternatively, there is a world in which others struggle to grab opportunities higher in the line-up and Suter finds himself back with Miller and Boeser. The Canucks have rounded out their winger ranks in the off-season and it seems like there will be more options to find players that can fill holes on the wing. Suter is a natural centre and, as such, he will likely be needed in the middle. It would be a massive disappointment if Pius Suter was unable to reach double-digits in goals or 25 points for the season.

Goals for Pius Suter for 2024-25:

*score 16 goals and 40 points – both would be career highs in the NHL

*carry a better than 50% success rate in the face-off circle

*take on a larger role as a penalty killer

*set himself up for a sizeable raise on a new contract

While flexibility and versatility are admirable traits, Pius Suter needs to arrive in camp focussed and ready to be the best centre he can be for the Vancouver Canucks. Opportunity is knocking and he has to be ready to answer the call. If he is, the Canucks look to have the component parts of what should be a very solid third line heading into the new hockey season.