It's another Hughes family reunion as Quinn and the Canucks take on brothers Jack and Luke in a battle for Hughes family supremacy. Also, the New Jersey Devils are involved.
Vancouver Canucks (16-8-1) vs New Jersey Devils (11-10-1)
7:00 PM PST
ROGERS ARENA, VANCOUVER, BC
SPORTSNET PACIFIC, MSG NETWORK, NHL NETWORK
Fresh off a big Pacific Division win Saturday night in Calgary, the Canucks are back at it, after a luxurious two day break. A win tonight is vital, in that it will move them to within two points of first place Vegas, and also ensure that the LA Kings stay at least two points behind them.
After struggling through November compared to their torrid start to the season, the Canucks kicked December off on the right foot Saturday night with a 4-3 win over the Flames in Calgary. They're beginning a stretch of five straight at home, beginning with a team that they've been finding hard to handle of late: the New Jersey Devils.
It's the first time that Quinn Hughes will face off against both of his siblings in an NHL game, and while the Canucks will be focused on securing two points, the eyes of hockey fans across North America are definitely trained on tonight's contest. The Devils have won four of the last five meetings between these teams, including both games last year. And while the Canucks have been one of the true surprises of the NHL this season, the Devils have too, only not in a good way. Many had the Devils pencilled in to be Cup contenders in the East, but they've stumbled out of the gate, and find themselves four points out of a wild card slot in the Eastern Conference. They're 4-6-0 in their last ten games, and are hoping this Western road swing will help them get back on track.
And while the Hughes brothers matchup is getting all the press, there's one other factor to tonight's game that shouldn't be overlooked. Travis Green is set for his first appearance behind the visitors bench since he was fired as the Canucks head coach two years ago today. If that's not some sort of universal karma/schedule guy trying to mess with people, I dunno what is.
LINEUPS
We found this potential lineup spray-painted on the side of a transport trailer parked alongside Highway 1 out in the valley, but I am pretty sure they got it from nhl dot com.
Devils projected lineup
Erik Haula -- Jack Hughes -- Tyler Toffoli
Ondrej Palat -- Nico Hischier -- Jesper Bratt
Timo Meier -- Dawson Mercer -- Alexander Holtz
Curtis Lazar -- Michael McLeod -- Nathan Bastian
Jonas Siegenthaler -- Simon Nemec
Kevin Bahl -- John Marino
Colin Miller -- Luke Hughes
Vitek Vanecek
Akira Schmid
Scratched: Chris Tierney
Injured: Tomas Nosek (foot), Dougie Hamilton (torn pectoral muscle)
Suspended: Brendan Smith
Canucks projected lineup
Ilya Mikheyev -- Elias Pettersson -- Sam Lafferty
Andrei Kuzmenko -- J.T. Miller -- Brock Boeser
Dakota Joshua -- Teddy Blueger -- Conor Garland
Nils Hoglander -- Nils Aman -- Linus Karlsson
Quinn Hughes -- Filip Hronek
Ian Cole -- Noah Juulsen
Nikita Zadorov -- Tyler Myers
Thatcher Demko
Casey DeSmith
Scratched: Phillip Di Giuseppe, Mark Friedman
Injured: Pius Suter (lower body), Carson Soucy (foot), Guillaume Brisebois (concussion)
No changes for the Canucks, as PDG continues to ride pine in favour of Linus Karlsson, while Sam Lafferty continues his improbable run on the Canucks first line. With every passing game, that signing looks better for Jim Rutherford and Patrik Allvin. While it may not sit well with some, Noah Juulsen is in again in favour of Mark Friedman.
The Devils found out recently that they'll be without Dougie Hamilton long term after he suffered a torn pectoral muscle. It'll be Vitek Vanacek vs Thatcher Demko in the crease tonight.
GAME DAY CHATTER
GAME DAY BATTLE HYMN
While the UK may be the birthplace of heavy metal, it always seemed somewhat lacking when it came to contributions to thrash metal. Apart from bands like Xentrix, Onslaught and Hellbastard, UK thrash acts never really seemed to move the needle. That's all changed over the last decade, with the New Wave Of Thrash Metal. Bands like Evile, SSS, Shrapnel and Pest Control have put out some fantastic stuff, and while the first three may be a little more familiar to metal heads, Pest Control is one you don't wanna sleep on.
Born in Leeds during the lockdown, their debut album 'Don't Test The Pest' is holding up as one of the better thrash discs of 2023. Check out their video for 'Enjoy The Show'!
This one should be fun! Enjoy the game, eh? Go Canucks Go!
Injuries are beginning to mount alongside the losses. The Canucks face more adversity as they start a back to back with an almost 840 mile trip in between.
Vancouver Canucks (13-5-1) vs Seattle Kraken (8-8-5)
CLIMATE PLEDGE ARENA, SEATTLE, WAS
7:00PM PST
SPORTSNET PACIFIC
The underwhelming feeling that followed the loss in Denver on Wednesday night is nothing compared to the oh so familiar feeling of "Dear god, what now?" when it comes to injuries the Canucks have been dealing with over the last few days. With Carson Soucy and Pius Suter now listed on injured reserve, requiring the Canucks to put in a call to Abbotsford for forwards to bolster the beleaguered lineup.
It's not all bad news, thankfully.
It was looking as though they wouldn't have either of them available for tonight's contest, but it's not just the guys who are out that give cause for concern. Whether it's an injury he's playing through or an illness, something is clearly not right with Elias Pettersson for these past few games. He's out there, and sure he's getting points here and there, but he definitely isn't the same EP40 we saw earlier in the campaign.
We could go on about the frustration that was Wednesday's game against the Avalanche (and believe me, there's an f'ing list of shit I could talk about), but much like the team themselves, the focus must stay on the task at hand, and with tonight's contest the first of five straight against Pacific Division opponents, these are must win games if the Canucks want to keep the distance they've built between themselves and their rivals.
A chance for payback is always good, and when you look at that 4-3 loss to the Kraken a few days ago, it's definitely a game where the Canucks deserved a better fate. Bad bounces, a goaltender playing far above his average for the season, and some questionable calls made for a frustrating loss, but that can all be erased tonight with a win. Fatigue will definitely be an issue though, as the Canucks have played a lot of hockey over the past three weeks, and with a jaunt down to San Jose tomorrow night, it's definitely something to keep in mind.
One thing they'll have to do is play smart. Avoiding the penalty box is going to ensure they can roll all four lines and keep the top six from getting burnt out. They have the luxury of a backup goaltender they can rely on, and we'll see Casey DeSmith in the crease for one of these two contests. Finishing the month on a high note as they head to December is important, and with the Vegas Golden Knights and first place in the Pacific still within striking distance, getting on a roll will help that in a big way.
LINEUPS
Canucks projected lineup
Sam Lafferty -- Elias Pettersson -- Ilya Mikheyev
Anthony Beauvillier -- J.T. Miller -- Brock Boeser
Dakota Joshua -- Teddy Blueger -- Conor Garland
Phillip Di Giuseppe -- Nils Aman -- Nils Hoglander
Quinn Hughes -- Filip Hronek
Mark Friedman -- Tyler Myers
Ian Cole -- Cole McWard
Thatcher Demko
Casey DeSmith
Scratched: Andrei Kuzmenko, Akito Hirose
Injured: Pius Suter (undisclosed), Carson Soucy (foot), Guillaume Brisebois (concussion)
Kraken projected lineup
Jared McCann -- Matty Beniers -- Jordan Eberle
Jaden Schwartz -- Alexander Wennberg -- Brandon Tanev
Eeli Tolvanen -- Yanni Gourde -- Oliver Bjorkstrand
Tye Kartye -- Pierre-Edouard Bellemare -- Kailer Yamamoto
Vince Dunn -- Adam Larsson
Jamie Oleksiak -- Will Borgen
Brian Dumoulin -- Justin Schultz
Joey Daccord
Chris Driedger
Scratched: Jaycob Megna
Injured: Andre Burakovsky (upper body), Philipp Grubauer (undisclosed)
Well, some might be surprised by this, but if you are, you haven't really been paying attention to how Rick Tocchet runs things, as we'll see a pretty significant lineup shuffle, as well as Andrei Kuzmenko listed as a healthy scratch tonight. We knew there was going to be regression after his incredible debut last season, and if the Canucks had been truly struggling this season, this might have happened sooner. This is clearly an attempt to send a message to both player and team that things cannot rest solely on the shoulders of the stars, so watch for a response both tonight, and tomorrow when Kuzmenko returns to the lineup.
Will these lines hold? Who knows. I'm all here for the team actually trying to address issues instead of just shuffling along when things obviously need a shakeup.
GAME DAY CHATTER
GAME DAY BATTLE HYMN
Some more Japanese metal weirdness for you. With 'Pardon Me, I Have To Go Now', this is HANABIE. You're welcome.
Enjoy the game. Go Canucks Go! Make sure to check out the post game wrap up and then we'll do this all again tomorrow.
With the losing skid snuffed out after a 3-1 win over the San Jose Sharks, the Canucks are on the road for a hellacious 3 games in 4 nights that features a ridiculous amount of travel. They can do themselves a massive favour if they start it off with a win over the Avs tonight.
Vancouver Canucks (13-5-1) vs Colorado Avalanche (11-6-0)
7:00PM PST
Ball Arena, Denver, CO
Sportsnet Pacific
It wasn't perfect, and the Canucks still look like a tired team, but they got the job done against a San Jose team that looked a hell of a lot better than the one they embarrassed a couple weeks back. While it's good they stopped the losing before it became a genuine streak, it certainly doesn't bode well heading into tonight's contest against one of the best in the West, with the altitude and issues related to that in consideration.
That's not to say we should just write this one off, mind you. The Avs have been struggling of late, just 5-5 in their last ten, and four of those are in the last three weeks. Those losses saw them outscored 23-8, including a 7-0 loss in Vegas and an 8-2 stomping at home to the St Louis Blues. It's not that they're not good, but it does show you even good teams, especially when they have to deal with injury issues, can struggle. Something to keep in mind over the next few weeks.
A lot of the hype heading into tonight is about the matchup between Quinn Hughes and Cale Makar, and while it's going to be a treat to see two of the NHL's best defencemen go head to head. But for me, this is a test for the Vancouver Canucks, and a chance for them to show they're ready to take this next step against a legitimate Stanley Cup contender. That's far more important to me than any one player's night. Sure, we'd love to see Quinn show everyone why he's quite likely the best in the NHL right now, but it's not the most important thing here. I'd take Hughes getting held off the scoresheet if the Canucks can roll outta Denver with two points in their pockets tonight.
One thing they'll need to do is get another one of those games from Thatcher Demko, and if there's a spot where the Canucks have a clear advantage over the Avs, it's in goal. They're going to need to make sure they all show up for one of those lunch pail kind of nights on defence. The Avs, in spite of recent struggles, are still very capable of scoring in bunches. That means things will need to be a hell of a lot tighter than they have been over the past few games, and more like what we saw when they played Dallas, for example.
LINEUPS
This potential lineup was found scrawled on the back a program for Beetlejuice: The Musical. Or maybe it was on nhl dot com.
Canucks projected lineup
Andrei Kuzmenko -- Elias Pettersson -- Ilya Mikheyev
Phillip Di Giuseppe -- J.T. Miller -- Brock Boeser
Dakota Joshua -- Teddy Blueger -- Conor Garland
Nils Hoglander -- Sam Lafferty -- Anthony Beauvillier
Quinn Hughes -- Filip Hronek
Ian Cole -- Noah Juulsen
Mark Friedman -- Tyler Myers
Thatcher Demko
Casey DeSmith
Scratched: Akito Hirose
Injured: Pius Suter (undisclosed), Carson Soucy (foot), Guillaume Brisebois (concussion)
Avalanche projected lineup
Valeri Nichushkin -- Nathan MacKinnon -- Mikko Rantanen
Jonathan Drouin -- Ryan Johansen -- Tomas Tatar
Miles Wood -- Ross Colton -- Logan O'Connor
Andrew Cogliano -- Fredrik Olofsson -- Joel Kiviranta
Devon Toews -- Cale Makar
Bowen Byram -- Josh Manson
Jack Johnson -- Caleb Jones
Alexandar Georgiev
Ivan Prosvetov
Scratched: Kurtis MacDermid, Samuel Girard
Injured: Artturi Lehkonen (upper body)
Looks like we'll see the same lineup as we saw on Monday in the win over the Sharks. The Avs are going to be without D Samuel Girard, who is away from the team for personal reasons.
GAME DAY CHATTER
With three games in four nights, and the Canucks leaving Pius Suter at home, we should expect a call-up from Abbotsford to ensure that they have enough forwards to get through this.
GAME DAY BATTLE HYMN
Got an absolutely breathtaking cover of DIO's 'Rainbow In The Dark' from Denver doom metal crew KHEMMIS for you today. This is off their live mini album 'Doomed Heavy Metal'. It's only available digitally through Nuclear Blast Records, but if you like your metal slow and sludgy, these guys are well worth a listen.
Enjoy the game, everyone. Go Canucks Go!
Call it regression. Call it exhaustion. Call it whatever you want, but that loss in Calgary wasn't pretty. Pay close attention to how the Canucks respond, as they get ready to do another stupid 5 games in 8 nights run.
Vancouver Canucks (12-3-1) vs Seattle Kraken (6-8-4)
7:00PM PST
ROGERS ARENA, VANCOUVER, BC
CBC, SPORTSNET, CITY
We knew a regulation loss was coming, it just sucks that it had to come against the Flames. They're not that good, and combined with the aforementioned 5th game in 8 nights scenario, and some mind-blowingly bad officiating, and this one was done before puck drop.
Thankfully, they're at home, and have had a day's rest, and this next 5 game set sees them play Seattle and San Jose twice, broken up by a highly anticipated match against another of the best in the west when they travel to Denver to take on the Colorado Avalanche. But let's not get ahead of ourselves here. This is another Western Conference game, and if we're being honest, these are the truly important ones. Ensuring they stay in the top 3 in the Pacific Division and home ice in round one of the playoffs is the goal, and considering how well they've done against Western opponents so far, garnering an impressive 16 of 18 possible points so far. Rattling off four of the next 5 will go a long way to ensuring their post-season drought comes to an end this year.
The anticipated Canucks regression gets a lot of print space right now, but I think more should be said about what's happening just South of Vancouver. After an impressive sophomore season, complete with playoff games and their first ever playoff series win in that seven game series victory over the Colorado Avalanche. The Kraken have struggled so far this season, including losing four straight to start the year. They're gonna need to go on a run in order to make up the ground they've lost, as they're two points out of the last wild card slot at the moment, and they've played more games than any other team in the West. It's not looking good, and it shouldn't be a shock if they can't pull this off.
That's not to suggest that the Canucks should take this, or any game lightly, and one of the more impressive things so far this season is how the Canucks have responded to losses. Take the way they responded in Montreal after a frustrating loss in Toronto the night before. Or the win in Florida after dropping a heart breaker to the Tampa Bay Lightning. This team is mentally stronger than in the past, and that's going to pay dividends as the season wears on.
LINEUPS
Scrawled in spraypaint on an overpass along Highway 1 near Chilliwack was this potential lineup. Or was it nhl dot com?
Kraken projected lineup
Jared McCann -- Matthew Beniers -- Jordan Eberle
Jaden Schwartz -- Alexander Wennberg -- Brandon Tanev
Eeli Tolvanen -- Yanni Gourde -- Oliver Bjorkstrand
Tye Kartye -- Pierre-Edouard Bellemare -- Kailer Yamamoto
Vince Dunn -- Adam Larsson
Jamie Oleksiak -- Will Borgen
Brian Dumoulin -- Justin Schultz
Philipp Grubauer
Joey Daccord
Scratched: Jaycob Megna, Andrew Poturalski
Injured: Andre Burakovsky (upper body)
Canucks projected lineup
Andrei Kuzmenko -- Elias Pettersson -- Ilya Mikheyev
Phillip Di Giuseppe -- J.T. Miller -- Brock Boeser
Dakota Joshua -- Teddy Blueger -- Conor Garland
Nils Hoglander -- Sam Lafferty -- Anthony Beauvillier
Quinn Hughes -- Filip Hronek
Ian Cole -- Noah Juulsen
Akito Hirose -- Tyler Myers
Thatcher Demko
Casey DeSmith
Scratched: Mark Friedman
Injured: Pius Suter (undisclosed), Carson Soucy (foot), Guillaume Brisebois (concussion)
The good news is that Andrei Kuzmenko will return to the lineup tonight. The not so good news? Noah Juulsen still can't seem to play his way to the pressbox. Akito Hirose will draw in with Tyler Myers tonight.
This should be a winnable game for the Canucks, who are going to need to see more 5 on 5 production to bolster a lethal power play. They're also going to need to be better on the PK. They've improved a lot since last season, but it's still not where it needs to be.
GAME DAY CHATTER
This is the Gary Bettman expansion dilemma. It's either a bare minimum against divisional rivals, or not getting to see some of the Eastern teams at all. Personally, I think the NHL has done sweet fuck all to try and build a Vancouver/Seattle rivalry, and I would rather see them play each other four times than against the bloody Oilers or Flames. It's insane that they play those two as well as the Sharks four times, yet their geographically closest opponent will only appear here once this season.
GAME DAY BATTLE HYMN
Emerging from the ashes of Texas thrash kings POWER TRIP after the tragic death of their vocalist Riley Gale, FUGITIVE have come to continue along the path forged by the Dallas crossover bangers. This single is available as a 7" from 20 Buck Spin Records, and we should expect a full length from them next year. This is one of those tunes that really, truly makes me miss the moshpits from back in the day.
Enjoy the game, everyone. Go Canucks Go!
The Return of the Bo!....not boo, it's says Bo.
So many storylines to choose from tonight.
Bo Horvat makes his return to Vancouver after being shipped out last year. I don't have a lot of emotion about his return. Bo was never a flashy player or outspoken. He just showed up to the rink and played. Probably why he was named captain of this team after the Sedins left. Was Bo the type of player to put the team on his shoulders and go get wins, not really. But he was also never the guy to suck for games on end. I think I was kind of hoping that Bo could be that first line guy that consistently got 30+ goals and 30+ assists. Alas, he only did that last year....a contract year...where we all knew that the Canucks didn't want to pay him the market money for that type of year. I certainly had no issue with the trade, especially when New York paid him an 8x8 contract extension. That seems ridiculous. His return tonight will surely elicit a lot of noise with variations of the letter "o" being used.
The other storyline I am more interested in is the fact the Canucks, with a win, could move into first place in the division and the Conference.
I know. It's the middle of November and the team hasn't fucked things up yet. The Canucks loved the score 5-2 over the road trip, as they won by it or lost by it. It might be the safe bet to put down on the sports betting websites that pop up endlessly on the tv screen. The coaching staff, all 100 of them, seem to have got everyone's attention.
Soucy is out 6-8 weeks with an injury and Friedman gets the call tonight to replace him. Trading Garland for defensive help would be nice. Hirose waits in the wings and may play if Myers can't go. Demko gets the call tonight and DeSmith will likely start tomorrow against Calgary. I don't care about the Islanders lineup...and it wasn't up by time I needed to post this.
Game Day Battle Hymn
Today's song is "California" by the Lagoons. This song is on my Chill mix on Spotify. I chose this for two reasons....first, I like the melody as it reduces my anger while driving on these shitty Central American roads. Secondly, I think Kent would absolutely hate this song.
Go Coconuts Go!
After a thorough stomping of the San Jose Sharks, who are truly awful, the Canucks find themselves with another big Saturday Night test as they host one of the best in the West, the Dallas Stars. Thursday was a trap game, but this one is absolutely a measuring stick game to see if the Canucks are for real.
CANUCKS (7-2-1) at STARS (7-1-1)
Comparables are fun. And for those of us who have enjoyed this sudden rebirth of the Vancouver Canucks as a team that can actually be called good, this is absolutely a game to see just where they are in terms of the upper echelon in the Western Conference. Not what we were expecting at this point of the season, let alone at any point during this campaign.
Generally, the rule of thumb is that if you're in a playoff spot after American Thanksgiving, you're a fairly safe bet to be in the post season dance. Thanks to an absolutely torrid start from the Canucks, and the embarrassingly bad performances from the Oilers and Flames, the Canucks are in a situation to lock themselves in, especially with a Pacific Division heavy schedule this month. Eight of their next fourteen games remaining in November are against Pacific Division opponents.
That's a potential 16 points with regulation victories that won't go to the teams they're battling with for playoff spots. Add in tonight's contest against Dallas, and a game later this month against Colorado, and that's 20 potential points. I'm not suggesting the Canucks are gonna run the table on this set of games, but when you consider that it's Edmonton, Calgary, Anaheim, Vegas, and two each against Seattle and San Jose, there's some absolutely winnable games here.
And when things are rolling, you don't want to mess with them, so it shouldn't come as a shock that we'll see Thatcher Demko in goal again tonight. With the Canucks set to start another Eastern road swing next week, which includes a weekend back to back against Toronto Saturday and Montreal Sunday, it's not like they won't be getting Casey DeSmith in on the action. Sometimes, you have to let elite goaltenders go on a run, and the way Demko is stopping the puck right now, this is exactly what Rick Tocchet is doing.
Tonight they're up against a very good Dallas team that resembles the Canucks in a lot of ways. They have some elite forwards, star defencemen and a solid approach to team defence, as well as outstanding goaltending. This one is gonna come down to special teams, and most specifically: the NHL's 3rd best penalty killing team trying to stop the 2nd best power play so far this season. Dallas has killed off 93% of their penalties so far this year, but they've also played a lot of bad teams so far.
LINEUPS
This lineup was found on the bathroom stall of a blues joint somewhere on the outskirts of Amarillo... or maybe nhl dot com, I think.
Stars projected lineup
Jason Robertson -- Roope Hintz -- Joe Pavelski
Jamie Benn -- Wyatt Johnston -- Evgenii Dadonov
Mason Marchment -- Matt Duchene -- Tyler Seguin
Ty Dellandrea -- Sam Steel -- Craig Smith
Ryan Suter -- Miro Heiskanen
Thomas Harley -- Jani Hakanpaa
Esa Lindell -- Nils Lundkvist
Jake Oettinger
Scott Wedgewood
Scratched: Joel Hanley
Injured: Radek Faksa (upper body)
Canucks projected lineup
Andrei Kuzmenko -- Elias Pettersson -- Ilya Mikheyev
Phillip Di Giuseppe -- J.T. Miller -- Brock Boeser
Dakota Joshua -- Pius Suter -- Conor Garland
Anthony Beauvillier -- Sam Lafferty -- Nils Hoglander
Quinn Hughes -- Filip Hronek
Ian Cole -- Mark Friedman
Carson Soucy -- Tyler Myers
Thatcher Demko
Casey DeSmith
Scratched: Noah Juulsen, Jack Studnicka
Injured: Teddy Blueger (foot), Guillaume Brisebois (concussion)
So Dakota Joshua is back from his one game press box exile, and it's natural we should expect him to be noticeable tonight, lest he find his rear back there on Monday when the Oilers roll in. Other than that, no changes, no new injuries. Stars are essentially healthy, so this is two teams at their best, going head to head. I think we'll be in for a fun night of hockey.
GAME DAY CHATTER
GAME DAY BATTLE HYMN
Found myself in a mood for something in the vein of old school ENTOMBED or DISMEMBER, and this new one from ENDSEEKER fits the bill quite nicely. The German band has a new one out on METAL BLADE Records, so check out the title track from 'Global Worming'!
Enjoy the game everyone! Go Canucks Go!
After a frustrating OT loss on Saturday where the Canucks were deserving of a much better fate, they'll look to finish a surprisingly strong October with a visit from Nashville.
CANUCKS (5-2-1) vs PREDATORS (4-4-0)
7:00 PM PST
SPORTSNET One
We could go on about the atrocious officiating on Saturday, but there's not really much else one can say. The Rangers got a gift, but the Canucks proved they can hang with one of the best, and that's something we weren't ready to be able to say this season, let alone in the first ten games. And yet, here we are. The Canucks are (with the full caveat that it's still early), very much one of the team that should be in the Western Conference mix this year. It's a surprise, especially given there are still numerous areas where the team can play better.
Sure, it helps they've got one of the best one-two goalie combos to start the season, and their best players have been absolutely lights out. Defensively they've been outstanding and the offensive contributions from the backend are already making a massive difference. There's still room from growth on the defensive end, the penalty kill, while better can still be improved, and they need more out of their bottom six. It's hard to criticize the bottom six too much when they're all playing a solid two way game, and there's rarely been a game with passengers, but this team being a bigger threat to score regardless of which line is on could turn them into a legit contender.
They're going up against a Nashville team tonight that they beat a week ago, withstanding a comeback and putting together a strong, inspirational finish to a road trip that begun to look dire after back to back losses in Philadelphia and Tampa. They are starting the first of four at home before making their annual Eastern Canadian road swing, and with the last two of those four against a very good Dallas Stars team and a third meeting with divisional rivals Edmonton Oilers, they'll want to get as many points as they can before heading into an Eastern Canadian gauntlet that is as tough as it's been in years.
Tonight also marks the first appearance of the skate jersey this season, much to the delight of the fan base. The return of the skate was a big success, and honestly, this team would just be printing money if they ditched the cursed whale forever and went back to the best damn jersey they ever wore.
LINEUPS
This potential lineup was scrawled in blood on my bathroom mirror... oh, wait. Nevermind, it was on nhl dot com:
Predators projected lineup
Filip Forsberg -- Ryan O’Reilly -- Gustav Nyquist
Kiefer Sherwood -- Tommy Novak -- Luke Evangelista
Yakov Trenin -- Colton Sissons -- Liam Foudy
Samuel Fagemo -- Juuso Parssinen -- Cole Smith
Roman Josi -- Dante Fabbro
Ryan McDonagh -- Alexandre Carrier
Jeremy Lauzon -- Tyson Barrie
Kevin Lankinen
Juuse Saros
Scratched: Michael McCarron, Marc Del Gaizo, Philip Tomasino
Injured: Luke Schenn (lower body), Cody Glass (lower body)
Canucks projected lineup
Andrei Kuzmenko -- Elias Pettersson -- Ilya Mikheyev
Phillip Di Giuseppe -- J.T. Miller -- Brock Boeser
Anthony Beauvillier -- Pius Suter -- Conor Garland
Dakota Joshua -- Sam Lafferty -- Nils Hoglander
Quinn Hughes -- Filip Hronek
Ian Cole -- Mark Friedman
Carson Soucy -- Tyler Myers
Thatcher Demko
Casey DeSmith
Scratched: Noah Juulsen, Jack Studnicka
Injured: Teddy Blueger (foot), Guillaume Brisebois (concussion)
Interesting that Nashville is choosing not to go with Juuse Saros tonight, instead giving Kevin Lankonen his first start of the season. I get he needs to play, but this could end badly for them. No real changes for the Canucks tonight, but there's definitely a spotlight on the third and fourth lines. Hoglander's been fantastic, and the play of Lafferty and Suter has been a surprise, but we need to see more from Beauvillier, Garland, and Joshua.
GAME DAY CHATTER
GAME DAY BATTLE HYMN
With this game falling on Halloween, you know I was feeling a bit of pressure to find a video worthy of the best holiday there is. Thankfully, I was saved. All hail the King, baby. King Diamond dropped a brand new video today, and it is everything we could have hoped for. No surprise, for the King never misses. Crank this one, make sure and give those kids full size bars, and after that, enjoy the game. Go Canucks Go!
After a fairly successful road swing out east, the Canucks return home for their first back to back of the season. They're mostly intact and even more surprisingly, adapting and addressing issues on the ice.
CANUCKS (4-2-0) vs BLUES (3-2-1)
7:00 PM PST
SPORTSNET One
It was looking kinda grim, and kinda familiar. A poor effort in Philadelphia, followed by a better, but nowhere good enough one in Tampa and the Canucks found themselves crashing back to earth, sitting at .500 to start the season, and looking very much like the Canucks teams we've been subjected to for the last decade. But when they got to South Florida, something changed. Little tweaks, like moving Tyler Myers to third pairing defensive minutes, and a renewed approach to the 'defence by committee' mindset Rick Tocchet and his coaching staff have been preaching paid huge dividends, as they came up with a big win in Sunrise against the Panthers, and followed it up with a dominant performance in Nashville.
Both games saw the Canucks be the better team in the 2nd period, something that his been this franchise's kryptonite for a long time now, and the Panthers game showed us something we didn't see last season: when faced with coughing up a lead, they didn't buckle under the pressure, and instead got a huge goal from Andrei Kuzmenko, and an empty netter from Brock Boeser to seal the deal.
In Nashville, it was the supporting cast getting it done, with goals from Ilya Mikhayev, Phil DiGiuseppe, and Nils Hoglander scoring for the Canucks. They hung on to get the win, but were the far better team on the ice that night. The attention to detail, and getting commitments from guys like JT Miller and Elias Pettersson to lead defensively has become a rallying cry on this team, and when you add in the chemistry that's developed between Quinn Hughes and Filip Hronek, the Canucks may genuinely be... good. I say this cautiously, but they're definitely making life easier on Thatcher Demko and Casey DeSmith, and that's going to be a massive factor in a potential return to the postseason, especially with the way the Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames have stumbled out of the gate.
Tonight they take on the latest team to embarrass the Flames, the St Louis Blues. Fresh off a 3-0 shutout at the Saddledome last night, the Canucks will hope they can catch their opponents tired, and win their third straight before hosting the New York Rangers on Saturday. The Blues haven't exactly been a powerhouse so far, losing two shootouts already this season as well as a 6-2 drubbing at the hands of the Arizona Coyotes. They have won two of their last three though, and always seem to play the Canucks hard.
LINEUPS
The following projected lineup was seen plastered on a bus stop on Hastings St next to a flyer looking for people interested in losing weight in an experimental treatment doctors don't want you to know about. Or, it might have also been on nhl dot com.
Blues projected lineup
Brandon Saad -- Robert Thomas -- Jordan Kyrou
Pavel Buchnevich -- Brayden Schenn -- Kasperi Kapanen
Alexey Toropchenko -- Kevin Hayes -- Jake Neighbours
Oskar Sundqvist -- Sammy Blais
Nick Leddy -- Colton Parayko
Torey Krug -- Justin Faulk
Marco Scandella -- Robert Bortuzzo
Scott Perunovich
Jordan Binnington
Joel Hofer
Scratched: Jakub Vrana, Tyler Tucker, Nikita Alexandrov
Injured: None
Canucks projected lineup
Andrei Kuzmenko -- Elias Pettersson -- Ilya Mikheyev
Phillip Di Giuseppe -- J.T. Miller -- Brock Boeser
Dakota Joshua -- Pius Suter -- Conor Garland
Anthony Beauvillier -- Sam Lafferty -- Nils Hoglander
Quinn Hughes -- Filip Hronek
Ian Cole -- Mark Friedman
Carson Soucy -- Tyler Myers
Thatcher Demko
Casey DeSmith
Scratched: Noah Juulsen, Jack Studnicka
Injured: Teddy Blueger (foot), Guillaume Brisebois (concussion)
Looks like if something's not broken, just leave it when it comes to the Canucks. Blueger isn't ready to return just yet, but they'll deal with that bridge when they get to it. Thatcher Demko will get the crease tonight, while DeSmith will get the Rangers tomorrow. It's refreshing to not have to be worried about Demko's workload right now, and the DeSmith trade is looking better all the time. They'll be facing the perpetually aggrieved diaper baby Jordan Binnington tonight, and hopefully they'll light the goal lamp redder than his constantly pissed off face tonight.
GAME DAY CHATTER
GAME DAY BATTLE HYMN
Greek thrashers BIO-CANCER are back with a new album, and this one's an absolute beast. They continue to get better with each release, and are ready to make that step to be considered among some of the upper echelon Euro thrash acts now. Check out the video for 'Citizen...Down!' from Revengeance available now on Hammerheart Records. I picked this one up on vinyl the other day and it's glorious!
Enjoy the game tonight, and we'll have full postgame coverage as well as a look at tomorrow night's tilt against the Rangers. Go Canucks Go!
A loss keeps the Canucks microscopically slim Draft Lottery hopes alive. A win could help keep Calgary from making the playoffs. How the hell are we supposed to choose here?
VANCOUVER CANUCKS (35-36-7) vs CALGARY FLAMES (37-27-15)
7:00 PM PST
ROGERS ARENA, VANCOUVER, BC
TV: SN, CBC, CITY TV. RADIO: SN650
Talk about a difficult choice. On the one hand, we have an outcome that could lead to the hockey gods finally deciding that the Canucks have suffered enough, and allow them to win the coveted first overall pick in this summer's entry draft, allowing hometown boy Connor Bedard to play for the team he loved growing up. On the other hand, we get a moral victory wrapped in a real one, as we give the Flames just two opportunities to try and overtake the Winnipeg Jets for the final wild card slot in the Western Conference.
There's a genuine appeal to helping hammer a nail on the coffin of this season for the Flames. They might be the closest thing the Canucks have to a bitter rival, given the number of epic playoff battles they've had. Honestly though, if losing this game (and the remaining three on the road next week) results in the Canucks winning the draft lottery, it would all be worth it.
It's getting harder and harder to stay tuned in to what they're doing on the ice right now. So much of what they do over the course of sixty minutes is just so uninspiring and unwatchable, save for a few moments of brilliance from the usual suspects. As a fan base we've been suffering for years now, going through a drought that is the worst in this team's existence. I don't think this even gets talked about enough, that there isn't a ten year stretch at any point in the history of the Canucks where they miss the playoffs eight out of those ten times. I'm tired of this shit, and pissed off that they continue to do what amounts to nothing year after year after fucking year.
So while it would be delicious fun to spoil the night for Jacob Markstrom, and see Milan Lucic pout and whine even more than usual, I really don't wanna see it. They need to just roll over, take the L and hope for a miracle, because unless there's an ownership change this summer, that's the only way we'll see meaningful change come to the Vancouver Canucks.
LINEUPS
Courtesy of nhl.com, this is what we might see on the ice at the Rog tonight:
Flames projected lineup
Andrew Mangiapane -- Elias Lindholm -- Tyler Toffoli
Jonathan Huberdeau -- Mikael Backlund -- Blake Coleman
Nick Ritchie -- Nazem Kadri -- Dillon Dube
Milan Lucic -- Trevor Lewis -- Walker Duehr
MacKenzie Weegar -- Rasmus Andersson
Nikita Zadorov -- Troy Stecher
Scratched: Jakob Pelletier, Adam Ruzicka, Matt Coronato, Michael Stone, Dennis Gilbert
Injured: None
Canucks projected lineup
Vitali Kravtsov -- Elias Pettersson -- Conor Garland
Phillip Di Giuseppe -- J.T. Miller -- Brock Boeser
Dakota Joshua -- Nils Aman -- Jack Studnicka
Andrei Kuzmenko -- Sheldon Dries -- Anthony Beauvillier
Quinn Hughes -- Kyle Burroughs
Scratched: Aidan McDonough
Injured: Guillaume Brisebois (undisclosed), Filip Hronek (shoulder), Vasily Podkolzin (hand), Christian Wolanin (lower body), Noah Juulsen (lower body), Oliver Ekman-Larsson (ankle), Travis Dermott (undisclosed), Ilya Mikheyev (torn ACL), Tanner Pearson (hand), Tucker Poolman (upper body)
Well, those are... lines. I don't think anyone anticipated Kuzmenko and Beauvillier on the fourth line, but here we are. Akito Hirose and Cole McWard get a chance to play again on Fan Appreciation night, and Thatcher Demko will try and keep his shutout streak going after a solid performance against the woeful Chicago Blackhawks Thursday night.
GAME DAY CHATTER
GAME DAY BATTLE HYMN
The word legendary gets tossed around in the music industry, but when it comes to punk, you better believe it when they attach it to the Dayglo Abortions. Victoria's controversial, and immensely influential hardcore act are still going strong, and with the news of original member Murray 'Cretin' Acton's recent cancer diagnosis, showing them some support would be a good thing, like snagging a copy of this Dayglos tribute album, featuring DEICIDE, GWAR, SNFU, MUNICIPAL WASTE, GHOUL, AGNOSTIC FRONT and others. So from that album, here's MUNICIPAL WASTE with 'Black Sabbath'.
Enjoy the game. Go Canucks Go, I guess.
VANCOUVER CANUCKS (31-33-5) vs VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS (43-21-6)
7:00 PM PST
ROGERS ARENA, VANCOUVER, BC
TV: SN PACIFIC. RADIO: SN650
I know it may come across as a tad jarring, especially coming from this writer, but I think the Canucks might have suffered from poor goaltending this season. Now, that's not to say that Thatcher Demko was a beast in the games he played before getting injured, because that's easy to disprove, but Spencer Martin was really in over his head, man.
Sure, there's few goalies that could have thrived with the porous Canucks defence in front of them, but there were so many losses where they just needed a save, and didn't get one. And while Demko had a rough start, and it was likely due to playing hurt, he's almost back to a .500 record, and is sure to pass that, leaving Martin as the only goalie the Canucks played this year with a losing record. I'm not suggesting he's the only reason this has been such a brutal season, but a healthy Thatcher Demko might have had them in contention for one of the playoff spots in the West. Add in the much improved defensive play, and while I still think the sample size is small and could just as easily be similar to the Bruce Bump last season, the Canucks are a much better team at the moment than they've been this season.
And it's that impressive defensive play that has me feeling, well... positive. Yeah, it's weird, and I still can't shake the feeling it's just going to be more of the same next season, but after the way the Canucks were able to grind out a win against LA on Saturday night, heading into tonight's contest against Vegas isn't nearly as frightening as it should be. Instead of a battle between one of the best in the West against the lowly Canucks, it's two teams with 8-2-0 records in their last ten games, waiting to see who blinks first.
That's not a diss against Vegas, just a recognition of the Canucks playing better since the coaching change, and how they've fared against Western Conference opponents. Sure, Vegas begrudgingly gets credit for being as good as they are in spite of the number of injuries they've had to deal with this season, but seeing them get bounced in the first round shouldn't come as a shock to anyone when it happens.
LINEUPS
Courtesy of nhl.com, this is what you should expect to see tonight:
Golden Knights projected lineup
Ivan Barbashev -- Jack Eichel -- Jonathan Marchessault
Reilly Smith -- William Karlsson -- Pavel Dorofeyev
Brett Howden -- Chandler Stephenson -- Michael Amadio
Paul Cotter -- Teddy Blueger -- Phil Kessel
Alec Martinez -- Alex Pietrangelo
Brayden McNabb -- Shea Theodore
Nicolas Hague -- Zach Whitecloud
Scratched: Ben Hutton
Injured: Mark Stone (back), Laurent Brossoit (lower body), Nicolas Roy (lower body), William Carrier (lower body), Adin Hill (lower body), Keegan Kolesar (upper body)
Canucks projected lineup
Andrei Kuzmenko -- Elias Pettersson -- Anthony Beauvillier
Phillip Di Giuseppe -- J.T. Miller -- Brock Boeser
Dakota Joshua -- Nils Aman -- Conor Garland
Vitali Kravtsov -- Sheldon Dries -- Vasily Podkolzin
Christian Wolanin -- Tyler Myers
Guillaume Brisebois -- Ethan Bear
Scratched: Jack Studnicka, Aidan McDonough, Kyle Burroughs
Injured: Filip Hronek (upper body), Oliver Ekman-Larsson (ankle), Travis Dermott (undisclosed), Ilya Mikheyev (torn ACL), Tanner Pearson (hand), Tucker Poolman (undisclosed)
Looks like it's Studnicka and Burroughs out and Kravtsov and Brisebois back in tonight. Demko is the starter after a solid performance from Collin Delia on Sunday against Anaheim. THe Golden Knights choosing to start Jonathan Quick is certainly a choice, especially given the way he's played against Vancouver over the past couple years. We'll just let them figure that out for themselves, though.
GAME DAY CHATTER
GAME DAY BATTLE HYMN
If you're at all familiar with German metal, you know the big name bands: KREATOR, SODOM, DESTRUCTION, TANKARD, among others, but a band that dates back to the early days, and like the others is still going strong is HOLY MOSES. Featuring vocalist Sabina Klassen, who sounds as vicious as ever, they continue to produce kickass, aggressive thrash worthy of a listen. Check out 'Cult Of The Machine' from 'Invisible Queen', which hits stores in April.
Enjoy the game, folks. Go Canucks Go.
