Eriksson blames his coach for poor performance in past seasons

We bet he’s on his way out!

HockeyFeed
HockeyFeed
Published 4 years ago
Eriksson blames his coach for poor performance in past seasons
Zuma Press

Canucks fans are all too aware that forward Loui Eriksson has has issues finding the back of the net since he joined Vancouver  after scoring 30 goals with the Boston Bruins in 2015-16. 

However, the veteran forward claims it’s his head coach’s fault… 

On Friday, Eriksson admitted to Sweden's HockeySverige that there is friction between he and coach Travis Green, and cited that as a reason for his diminished offensive output with the team.

“The coach and I don’t really get on 100 per cent,” Eriksson told the Swedish outlet, as translated by the Vancouver Province. “It is difficult when I do not get the same trust that I received from all the other coaches I had during my career. Of course it is tough on that front.”

Since 2016, Eriksson has only managed to score 31 goals. This past season, he finished with 11 goals and 29 points in 81 games with a minus-11 rating. He however believes he could be better if the coach gave him more minutes on the ice and if he wasn’t placed in a more defensive role under Green.

"Last two seasons I have played less and in a defensive role," Eriksson said, via Google Translate. "I also cannot make the same points as [I did] before if I do not play so much in the roles I had before. In this way, it is not really possible to compare, but I must do my best and fight on."
"Of course it is boring for that part," he added of the defensive role with decreased ice time.

In the interview, Eriksson appears to hint at a potential move or contract buyout despite having three seasons remaining on six-year deal he signed with the Canucks as a free agent in 2016.

"People can say what they want and it can spread quite quickly," Eriksson said. "As it looks now, I will play in Vancouver next season as well, but you never know what can happen. We'll see what happens after the summer."

Let’s hope Eriksson and Green can work things out before the start of next season. But for a man who is getting paid a team-high $6 million a year, he should focus on what he can do to get better and stop blaming other people. 

What do you say?