Though you can excuse anyone who follows this team for thinking otherwise, the Canucks have turned into one of the hotter teams in the nhl at the moment, going 5-1-1 in their last seven. They've hardly looked like world beaters, but they're showing signs of getting better, and almost all of it without Quinn Hughes.
Vancouver Canucks (25-18-11) vs. Toronto Maple Leafs (33-19-2)
4:00 pm PST; 7:00 pm EST
TV: Sportsnet, CBC
Radio: Sportsnet 650
The Canucks are coming off two straight wins, and while they still have a lot of tidying up to do, it would seem that so far, the changes they've made are having the desired effect. Sort of. While the team is playing better defensively, and they're stringing together some much needed wins, Elias Pettersson is still a cause for concern, especially after a virtual no-show against San Jose.
With J.T. Miller no longer in the picture, you would think that this game would see Pettersson reminding everyone why he was given an $11+ Million contract. Instead, he put up zeros and looked utterly lost all night long. There's speculation that he's injured, with some media saying this might be the case, while others adamantly deny it. And then there's SN650's Halford and Brough, suggesting it's a serious case of the yips, which if you look at his performance this season, could very well be the case.
Either way, the Canucks are going to have to play through it. Unless there's a team that's willing to take on that contract, and send back remotely comparable assets in return, they need to keep the progress rolling forward, with or without Petey. Having Thatcher Demko playing the kind of goal that we expect from him certainly makes that easier, and if not for an awful defensive blunder from Filip Chytil, we'd be talking about his back to back shutouts heading into this game.
And speaking of shutouts, let's not forget that the last time the Canucks faced the Leafs, they put together one of their best performances of the season, turning Scotiabank Arena into a library, nothing but hushed tones apart from the cheers of the Canucks fans in attendance as Kevin Lankinen shutout the Buds on home ice. The Leafs had lost three straight before swinging out West, rattling off wins in Edmonton, Calgary and Thursday night in Seattle. They're due for another loss, for sure.
The Canucks made a trade yesterday, sending Mark Friedman to Nashville for future considerations. That is a sure sign that D Elias Pettersson is going to remain on the blueline in Vancouver thanks to his impressive play since being called up, and I am confident he'll stay in the lineup over Noah Juulsen when Quinn Hughes returns to the lineup.
LINEUPS
Written in urine in a snowbank in front of the site that used to be a hotel owned by the fascist president of our neighbours to the south, we found today's lineups. They're also available on the ol nhl dot com...
7 p.m. ET; CBC, SN
Maple Leafs projected lineup
Matthew Knies -- Auston Matthews -- Max Domi
William Nylander -- John Tavares -- Mitch Marner
Bobby McMann -- Pontus Holmberg -- Nicholas Robertson
Max Pacioretty -- David Kampf -- Steven Lorentz
Jake McCabe -- Chris Tanev
Morgan Rielly -- Oliver Ekman-Larsson
Simon Benoit -- Philippe Myers
Joseph Woll
Anthony Stolarz
Scratched: Conor Timmins, Dakota Mermis, Ryan Reaves
Injured: Calle Jarnkrok (hernia), Jani Hakanpaa (lower body)
Canucks projected lineup
Jake DeBrusk -- Elias Pettersson -- Conor Garland
Drew O’Connor -- Filip Chytl -- Brock Boeser
Dakota Joshua -- Pius Suter -- Kiefer Sherwood
Nils Hoglander -- Teddy Blueger -- Nils Aman
Marcus Pettersson -- Tyler Myers
Derek Forbort -- Filip Hronek
Elias Pettersson -- Carson Soucy
Thatcher Demko
Kevin Lankinen
Scratched: Noah Juulsen, Vittorio Mancini
Injured: Quinn Hughes (undisclosed)
Looks like no changes for the Canucks from the lineup that we saw in San Jose on Thursday, and it's looking like they'll go with the hot hand and give Thatcher Demko the start, though I wouldn't mind seeing them throw Lankinen in there to see if he can recreate the magic of that win last month.
GAME DAY CHATTER
GAME DAY BATTLE HYMN
Seriously. We love our friends down there, but fuck your christofascist government.
Enjoy the game. The Leafs suck. Go Canucks Go!
