Straighten Up and Fly Right or Else...

When the Vancouver Canucks traded away Zack Kassian this Summer, I thought this was a now or never situation for him.  Unfortunately, given what happened to him last weekend, that potential that led him to being a first round pick out of Peterborough in 2009 may never be fully realized.

Rather than explain the entire situation, I'll let Canucks Army do the explaining.

The short of it is that Kassian was involved in an accident in a truck that he was a passenger of and suffered a fractured foot and broken nose.  Montreal General Manager Marc Bergevin was not exactly sympathetic of Kassian, as the accident happened around 6:30 AM, and one of the things Bergevin called out was the character.  Kassian entered in stage 2 of the NHL/NHLPA Substance Abuse program and will be out of action until cleared by doctors.

As for what to make of Kassian's latest mishap, here is a player that when he was drafted, was pegged to be a power forward in the vein of Milan Lucic, a player that can fight and score.  However, he never fulfilled his potential with Vancouver despite being given multiple chances, most notably on a line with both Sedins.  Last season, he was benched for a number of games and finally, was shipped out to Montreal in a move that can be best described as the Canucks "eating their hat" and admitting that the trade for him in 2012 didn't pan out.  As for Kassian's short time in Montreal, he didn't inspire confidence in the coaches, and now, he is facing a personal crossroads, as he could find himself out of the NHL if he doesn't get his off-ice problems sorted out.  Here's hoping he gets the help he needs and wherever he ends up playing next (for all we know, Montreal could cut their losses), he can find his way again.