Vancouver Canucks 2016/2017

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N_Fiddledog @ Wed Oct 19, 2016 11:20 pm

Canadian_Mind Canadian_Mind:

N_Fiddledog N_Fiddledog:

Gotta like this idea of coming on for the win in the last 2 minutes a lot better than last year's style of choking for the loss in the last 2.

Time to break out the jumping frog.

Canucks win. 2-1. Henrik Sedin scores in overtime.

Thought it was Tanev who scored in OT?

And yea, it's been 3 nail biter games... But it's nice to see the team rising to the challenge this go around.

I thought it was Tanev at first too. In fact so did the announcer and the other Canucks, but when the video is rewatched it turns out Tanev and Sedin both had their blades on it, but Sedin's blade is there first, so the goal was given to Henrik.

Watch the video. At exactly the 18 second mark you'll see it.

https://www.nhl.com/canucks/video/move- ... c-45462003

Hyack @ Thu Oct 20, 2016 3:41 pm

Buffalo at Vancouver

4

Miller slated to back up, Skille looks to have the last forward spot for meeting with Sabres.

Here are five things we’re pondering prior to Canucks taking aim at a fourth straight victory.

1. Leading in coming from behind

There have been eight wins in the NHL this season so far by teams trailing after two periods. The Canucks have three of them.

How this team plays from in front will be intriguing to see.

“To come back in this league is tough, but what I like is that we keep playing the way we want to play,” left winger Daniel Sedin said after the morning skate today. “We stick with it. There’s no panic on the bench or in the room. That’s a good sign.But we would like to get the lead once and awhile, too.”

Defenceman Ben Hutton added: “Obviously we don’t want to be playing from behind all season, but it shows the character in this locker room.”

Sedin insisted that the team structure and attention to detail, which has been so good so far, won’t change if they’re ahead.

“We play the same way down, up, on the road, at home. That should never change,” he said.

Hutton added: “You have to make smart plays whether you’re behind or ahead.”

According to Elias Sports Bureau, the Canucks are the first team in NHL history to win their first three games of season while never leading in regulation in any of those games.

The last time the Canucks won their first four games of a season was 1992-93.

2. Shut down squad

The Canucks allowed 32.5 shots per game last season, which was the second-highest total in the league. Through three games, they’ve permitted 23.7 shots per game, which is the second-best total in the circuit.

Any questions?

It’s a tiny sample, but that’s the structure and detail we’re talking about.

“We’ve really been harping on the defensive side, and it’s not just the D or the goalies,” said Hutton, the second-year rearguard. “It’s all five guys. It’s five up, five back. We’ve been working hard on forwards tracking hard and defence picking up the right guys and talking to the forwards.

“What I’ve noticed the most is our forwards tracking back hard. It’s nice when they have a 3-on-2 and you can see your forwards tracking back and he catches them right at our blue line and he can take the middle guy.”

3. No Miller time quite yet

Ryan Miller, who didn’t dress for the St. Louis game due to what the team is calling “a tightness in the core,” issue and made UBC’s Matt Hewitt a celebrity, was back on the ice for the morning skate today and is expected to back up Jacob Markstrom tonight.

Miller, of course, played 540 games over 11 years with the Sabres.

Coach Willie Desjardins said that he expects Miller to play during the weekend road trip to Los Angeles and Anaheim.

4. Skille fills the bill

Winger Jake Virtanen and defencemen Nikita Tryamkin and Alex Biega were the last three Canucks off the ice from the morning skate, which suggests that Vancouver is going to with the same line-up they had against St. Louis

Jack Skille, who took over for Virtanen last game, was skating with Bo Horvat and Sven Baertschi. The other lines featured Henrik and Daniel Sedin with Loui Eriksson, Brandon Sutter between Jannik Hansen and Markus Granlund and Brendan Gaunce centring Derek Dorsett and Alex Burrows.

Daniel Sedin is 4-12-16 in 18 career games versus the Sabres, while Henrik Sedin is 4-10-14 in 18.

5. Sabres missing pieces

Vancouver gets a Buffalo team missing two of its high-end talents in Jack Eichel (high-ankle sprain) and Vancouver native Evander Kane (cracked ribs).

The Sabres are wrapping up a three-game western swing that began with a 6-2 in Edmonton on Sunday and a 4-3 overtime loss in Calgary on Tuesday.

Hyack @ Thu Oct 20, 2016 8:22 pm

The Canucks open the scoring for the first time this season....... [B-o] [B-o]

Canadian_Mind @ Thu Oct 20, 2016 8:51 pm

Hyack Hyack:

The Canucks open the scoring for the first time this season....... [B-o]

Given the track record so far, means this game will either not go to overtime, or they will lose in overtime.

Hoping for the former. Would be good to see the team perform well out the gate.

Hyack @ Thu Oct 20, 2016 9:47 pm

The Canucks win it 2-1, the first time since the 92-93 season they have started the season winning their first 4 games......

Canadian_Mind @ Thu Oct 20, 2016 10:09 pm

Hyack Hyack:

The Canucks win it 2-1, the first time since the 92-93 season they have started the season winning their first 4 games......

The are all home games though, so the odds are somewhat stacked. Nonetheless, it is an impressive and unexpected start. If they can carry this trend into game 5 then it may just be something more than home ice advantage...

Hyack @ Thu Oct 20, 2016 10:39 pm

The Canucks next game will be Saturday when they visit LA to face the Kings, followed the next day when they play the Ducks in Anaheim. The Kings will as usual be a handful for the Canucks, I'm not too sure they will be able to stretch their undefeated streak to 5 games, I'll be quite happy if they come away with 2 points over the weekend.....but here's hoping they come away with a 6 game winning streak.... [B-o]

Canadian_Mind @ Sat Oct 22, 2016 7:57 am

Hyack Hyack:

The Kings have done terribly this year so far, and Anaheim isn't much better. They don't appear to be the same "choke in the third" team they have been since 2013, so I think they will do well. The game that makes me nervous is next week against the Caps.

Hyack @ Sat Oct 22, 2016 4:24 pm

Vancouver at Los Angeles

5

Iain MacIntyre: Four games in, Canucks drop Eriksson for Baertschi on first line

$1:

LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Kings have a goaltending crisis, but that won’t matter tonight unless the Vancouver Canucks find a way to sustain more offensive pressure.

To do so, coach Willie Desjardins is changing his first line, dropping $36-million-US free agent Loui Eriksson after just four games and giving struggling Sven Baertschi a chance to play with Hank and Danny Sedin.

Eriksson will skate on left wing with Bo Horvat and Jake Virtanen, the 20-year-old who sat out the Canucks’ last two games and is probably at risk of a minor-league demotion if he doesn’t show something in the next couple of weeks.

Desjardins is manoeuvring from a position of strength: the Canucks are 4-0 despite managing only seven regulation-time goals.

Eriksson and Baertschi are among seven Vancouver forwards without a goal so far.

“We’re looking to find ways to create a little bit more, so we just thought we’d try something a little different,” Desjardins said after the morning skate at Staples Center. “I don’t think (Baertschi) has played as well as he can, and he would agree with me.

“I like a lot of things about him though. I like his approach to the game, I like his attitude and I like his skill. But he just doesn’t seem to be going and he’s frustrated with it. Hopefully a little bit of a change will get him going. I think he puts lots of pressure on himself; most of the good players do. He just has to get going.”

Baertschi believes, as the Canucks do, that he is capable of a breakthrough season offensively. He is viewed of part of the next core group for the National Hockey League team, part of the offensive succession plan when the 36-year-old Sedins are gone.

But the 24-year-old Swiss winger has generated only four shots on a goal, and a single assist, in his first four games.

“As a player, you’re always hardest on yourself,” Baertschi said. “I always expect big things from me. It’s a great opportunity tonight for me to play with them, too, and try to understand how they play. I think I could simplify things a little bit. There’s a few times I’ve passed up a shot. I think I’ve been playing pretty good, but you always expect more.”

Already missing star goalie Jonathan Quick for at least three months due to a groin injury, the Kings suffered another blow this morning when backup Jeff Zatkoff was injured in the morning skate at Los Angeles’ training facility in El Segundo.

Veteran Peter Budaj was the scheduled starter tonight, but he’ll be backed up by former Dallas Stars’ first-rounder Jack Campbell, who was recalled from the Kings’ farm team in nearby Ontario, Calif.

The Canucks need to put pressure on the Kings, who are 1-3, and Virtanen has the direct, powerful game to do it.

“Jake can contribute,” Desjardins said. “He’s got good size, he can be physical and he can take pucks to the net. Those are things he can do and I just need to see him do it on a consistent basis.

“What I liked about Jake when he was out is I thought he worked hard. I thought his best practice of the year occurred last practice. I thought he was jumping and playing with way more speed than he was previously. I want him to play that way.”

The Staples Center is one of Virtanen’s favourite places to play. He made his NHL debut here a year ago, when he caught the Kings’ attention with a big hit on Norris Trophy-winning defenceman Drew Doughty.

Eligible for free passage between the NHL and American Hockey League, it’s vital that Virtanen proves he deserves to stay in the lineup while Swedish League MVP Anton Rodin recovers from a setback after major knee surgery last season. Rodin was one of the best Canucks in the pre-season and, pending other injuries, will dislodge someone from the NHL roster when he returns.

“Just in general, not just with Rodes coming back, you get in the lineup and you have to make the choice harder for the coach to pull you out,” Virtanen said. “You’ve got to give it all you’ve got every shift. I love playing in L.A. The atmosphere here is great … and I played my first game here. It’s a special place.”

Jack Skille comes out of the lineup for the Canucks, who will start Jacob Markstrom in goal and play Ryan Miller Sunday against the Anaheim Ducks.

“I think everybody is going to have to fight for their spot,” Desjardins said. “I just think as a player, there are only so many opportunities. You’ve got to make the most of it when you get an opportunity to get yourself in the lineup and stay there.”

[email protected]

N_Fiddledog @ Sat Oct 22, 2016 4:41 pm

Here's a little topical gossip.

Last week one of the local TSN talking heads started a little controversy by speculating on air that because the La goaltender was out for at least 2 months (so they said) LA might be go after Ryan Miller in a trade where our Canucks make out like bandits.

It got people talking, imagining outrageous possibilities like getting LA's first, a prospect and a player. Because LA would be that desperate, you see. :wink:

Me, I just hope that LA not having Jonathan Quick means we have a better shot at getting 2 points tonight, maybe.

Canadian_Mind @ Sat Oct 22, 2016 6:44 pm

Hyack, I wanted to thank you for keeping up with the pre-game posts. I've lost track of how long you've been doing it for now, but it feels like it's been ongoing since I left BC back in 08. I may. I may not post in here much, but it's always been appreciated. :rock: