Sure, it's pretty damn funny that the Oilers media and fans are treating Conor Garland like he was the one who did the dirty crosscheck to the head, but they're not crazy. They know exactly what they're doing, and it's going to result in a slew of Vancouver penalties tonight.
Vancouver Canucks (20-16-10) vs. Edmonton Oilers (29-15-3)
6:00 pm PST; 9:00 pm EST
TV: Sportsnet Pacific, West
Radio: Sportsnet 650
This whole thing sucks, honestly.
I mean, we reeeeeaaaaaalllllyyyyyyy need to talk about how bloody awful it was that the Canucks couldn't hold off the goddamn Buffalo Sabres in the second game of a back to back and ended up not even getting a single point. Instead, we have to talk about the colossal shit show that tonight is going to turn into. And yeah, there's zero chance this doesn't turn stupid. Their fans are frothing at the mouth to see Conor Garland's head on a Bauer Supreme. Their media is screaming for the rule book to "be applied fairly" as though Connor McDavid hasn't left a trail of uncalled head shots and stick infractions in the 12 months. And the Oilers appeared to have lost their minds, posting a press release talking about how they "support" McDavid as he goes through this Herculean trial. But have they lost the plot?
No, they know exactly what they're doing. From that cringe-worthy press release, to McDavid's near tearful interview, where he essentially says if they would have just punished that ne'er do well Garland, he wouldn't have been forced into attempted decapitation, the Oilers are playing you. This is criticism of the officials that leaves enough plausible doubt that they can't get fined. But the refs know exactly what they're saying. And I guarantee you tonight, Anytime an Oiler and Canuck player come together, the guys in the orange jerseys will snapping their necks like they're in the front row at a Slayer concert. That, and they're gonna be running at Hughes, Pettersson, Garland and Demko all night long. And it's likely to be Leon Draisaitl, who is just as bad at sneaky garbage hits.
McDavid seems to accept blame in the interview, but the "If they'd just made the call" line is straight out of their media partners mouths. And when you consider that McDavid got away with spearing Filip Hronek earlier in the game, not to mention an equally egregious hold that held a Canucks player back in the Oilers end, allowing Edmonton to gain the zone with a man advantage, it shows the flaws in their argument. You really want things called by the book? Careful what you wish for, you just may get it. After all, if you think about it, McDavid wouldn't have had to crosscheck Garland in the head if he'd been suspended for the chickenshit chicken wing head shot on Minnesota's Marcus Johanssen.
And that's why this game is bad. Instead of trying to yet again figure their shit out, and come out of a no excuses must win game, they have to worry about getting gooned by mouth breathers like Corey Perry and Evan Bouchard. This game has a Steve Moore/Todd Bertuzzi vibe to it, only stupider. The league actually did something this time, and the so called victim is actually the one who deserved the punishment.
So if they can do their best to avoid the dumb shit and minimize the power play opportunities, they're still going to need a game out of Thatcher Demko that they simply haven't gotten this season. He has to be the difference maker here, or there's no hope. If Demko can't get going, this is a lost season. Sure, Kevin Lankinen's been good as a late signing, but they have to get Thatcher Demko the All Star back if they hope to turn this around. It's not all the goaltending's fault by any stretch, but if these two don't start stealing games, it's a lottery pick for the Canucks.
LINEUPS
Scrawled on the back of the napkin Mark Spector used to wipe away the tears that flowed as he so 'elequently' begged people to please, PLEASE think about poor Connor McDavid, is the potential lineups, but then again, they're also on nhl dot com. Also, fuck Mark Spector, man.
9 p.m. ET; SNW, SNP
Canucks projected lineup
Jake DeBrusk -- Elias Pettersson -- Brock Boeser
Pius Suter -- J.T. Miller -- Conor Garland
Danton Heinen -- Teddy Blueger -- Kiefer Sherwood
Nils Hoglander -- Max Sasson -- Phil Di Giuseppe
Quinn Hughes -- Mark Friedman
Carson Soucy -- Filip Hronek
Derek Forbort -- Vincent Desharnais
Thatcher Demko
Kevin Lankinen
Scratched: Linus Karlsson, Elias Pettersson
Injured: Noah Juulsen (undisclosed)
Suspended: Tyler Myers
Oilers projected lineup
Vasily Podkolzin -- Leon Draisaitl -- Viktor Arvidsson
Corey Perry -- Adam Henrique -- Zach Hyman
Mattias Janmark -- Ryan Nugent-Hopkins -- Connor Brown
Jeff Skinner -- Noah Philp -- Kasperi Kapanen
Mattias Ekholm -- Evan Bouchard
Darnell Nurse -- Troy Stecher
Brett Kulak -- Ty Emberson
Calvin Pickard
Stuart Skinner
Scratched: None
Injured: John Klingberg (hip)
Suspended: Connor McDavid
So it looks like despite the callups, there won't be any changes to what we see from the Canucks tonight, but the Oilers are probably gonna put Calvin Pickard in, which is odd, because wouldn't you want your number one to get those lost points back? Then again, who can explain anything that franchise does. I haven't seen anything but fan rumblings, and this is just gut instincts here, but a loss tonight certainly has to start the Rick Tocchet firing watch, right? I mean, if he can't get these guys to be up for the most important game of the season so far, how is he going to get them into the playoffs. I want stability as much as you do, but I am starting to feel like just like Bruce Boudreau, Tocchet is not the answer. Also, and I am not going to post the link, but I saw that the 'beloved' owner of the team reached out to Paul Bissonette for advice on the JT Miller situation and what the actual fuck, man??? Asking that B******l meathead for advice on what to do about a disgruntled star player is like asking someone who's only ridden a bike their entire life about fixing your car. Embarrassing.
GAME DAY CHATTER
IMac has a great piece on the lead up to this game, with this beauty of a line: "There are worse holds on books at the library." Love it!...
So to translate, Juulsen is on the IR retroactive to the 14th of January, and the Canucks recalled Linus Karlsson and D Petey from Abbotsford.
GAME DAY BATTLE HYMN
Looking again at some of the best releases in the world of metal that came out forty years ago, today we're gonna have a listen to HIRAX. Out of Orange County, CA these guys were right there at the beginning, playing shows with some of the other new bands in the San Francisco and LA metal scenes like Metallica, Exodus, Slayer and tons more. Definitely one of the faster bands back in the day, they were a band that caused a lot of debate in the metal scene, thanks to the vocals of Katon W. De Pena. No middle ground here, you either loved them or hated them, but I was a fan from the first time I heard this track on the Best Of Metal Blade Vol 2 compilation. They're still going strong, and you can hear their influence in so many bands in the thrash and death metal scenes. The uh, interesting artwork for this release (known affectionately as 'The Egg Man album') is by Pushead, who did a lot of artwork for Metallica back in the day.
Try and enjoy the game, especially if it's gonna be Miller's last hurrah. Go Canucks Go!