THE INTRO
Welcome baaaack!
The Canucks get the night-cap of the Hockey Night in Canada doubleheader as they take on the visiting Los Angeles Kings. LA hasn’t been good lately but did win in OT last night while the Canucks have put together a handsome three-game win streak. It’s the talk of the town. Vancouver has been spreading the wealth around in that time, even more so over their last 10 games.
The push towards the postseason starts tonight and two points will go a long way.
Let’s Do This!™
WHAT ARE THE ODDS?
The odds for tonight’s game are: (VAN -175/ LAK +155) courtesy of OddsShark.com
TV / RADIO / PUCK DROP
CBC / SN 650 / 7:00 PM
LINEUPS
Alex Edler is back in the lineup and Jordie Benn sat last game. Asking for Tyler Myers to sit would be too much so Benn will probably sit again, which is a real shame. Oscar Fantenberg has been too impressive to sit but he does make less than Jordie so we’ll see there.
Josh Leivo is out until March most likely and Brandon Sutter is day-to-day.
Jacob Markstrom is well-rested and should start again this evening. Thatcher Demko has been activated which means Michael DiPietro has been sent back down to Utica.
Canucks lines courtesy of Dailyfaceoff.com:
| LW | C | RW | Forwards |
|---|---|---|---|
 TANNER PEARSON |
 BO HORVAT |
 LOUI ERIKSSON |
|
 J.T. MILLER |
 ELIAS PETTERSSON |
 BROCK BOESER |
|
 ANTOINE ROUSSEL |
 ADAM GAUDETTE |
 JAKE VIRTANEN |
|
 TIM SCHALLER |
 JAY BEAGLE |
 TYLER MOTTE |
| DEFENSIVE PAIRINGS | Defense | |
|---|---|---|
 ALEXANDER EDLER |
 CHRIS TANEV |
|
 QUINN HUGHES |
 TYLER MYERS |
|
 OSCAR FANTENBERG |
 TROY STECHER |
|
Derek Forbort (back) has been sent to Ontario for a reconditioning stint. Alec Martinez (wrist) is on the IR. He scored the series-ending goal in 2012 against the Canucks. Never forget.
Trevor Lewis (UBI) may play this evening but missed his game just before Christmas. Dustin Brown (down with the sickness) will not play tonight. Martin Frk (no vowels?) will play in his place.
Jonathan Quick would be the likely starter but Jack Campbell hasn’t been too shabby, he got the OT win last night.
Kings lines courtesy of Dailyfaceoff.com:
| LW | C | RW | Forwards |
|---|---|---|---|
 ALEX IAFALLO |
 ANZE KOPITAR |
 TYLER TOFFOLI |
|
 ADRIAN KEMPE |
 BLAKE LIZOTTE |
 AUSTIN WAGNER |
|
 NIKOLAI PROKHORKIN |
 JEFF CARTER |
 MARTIN FRK |
|
 KYLE CLIFFORD |
 MIKE AMADIO |
 MATT LUFF |
| DEFENSIVE PAIRINGS | Defense | |
|---|---|---|
 JOAKIM RYAN |
 DREW DOUGHTY |
|
 BEN HUTTON |
 MATT ROY |
|
 KALE CLAGUE |
 SEAN WALKER |
|
GAME NOTES AND A STAT OR TWO
- Brock Boeser hasn’t been scoring the goals a ton but he’s racking up the points. Boeser has two goals and nine assists in his last 10 games; three of those are on the PP. The Crown Prince was heating up just before the break and it’s possible he goes off this evening for a goal or two. In nine career games against the Kings, Boeser has 7G / 3A. Add to that the fact he’s potted 4 PPG and six PPP, he’s on deck for a big game.
- Elias Pettersson has six goals in his last 10 and for whatever reason, we’ve expected more? He hasn’t done much on the PP but he does have two game-winners. Pettersson isn’t too far away from eclipsing his rookie point total of 66 points. At 39 points currently, it’s just a matter of when.
- Chris Tanev is on pace for a career year this season. His current 10 game stat has him with a goal and six assists. Tanev is eight points away from tying his career-best of 20 points in 2014/15 when… the Canucks made the playoffs that year.
- J.T. Miller is the clubhouse leader in CF% but he’s slipped to seventh in the NHL at 58.02%. The Lotto line, Quinn Hughes, and Alex Edler are all over 52% which is a nice change from being among the league-worst a season ago.
- Oscar Fantenberg hasn’t been a mainstay with the Canucks all that long but he’s already played 170 minutes of 5v5 and is T-6 in GF% with 71.43. Not bad for a seventh defenseman.
#CANUCKSTWITTER
Will lacrosse be a mainstream activity in the NHL next season?
Moten on when Hoglander could make the #Canucks : “Not next year, maybe the year after but I didn’t think EP would do what he did last year. Sometimes we are wrong.” #Canucks .
— Rick Dhaliwal (@DhaliwalSports) December 28, 2019
Jeff, we’re not speaking right now
can't tell your Kelowna from you Kamloops? C'mon. That's easy. Kamloops has *multiple* Memorial Cups… https://t.co/GH4hZ9GElA
— Jeff Paterson (@patersonjeff) December 27, 2019
MY 94 CENTS
The Canucks current three-game win streak is impressive, yes it is, but it doesn’t mean they’re in the playoffs yet. They’ve outscored their opponents 13-7 in that time and the first game back after the Christmas break is usually positive. The Kings have lost their last two games and have an abysmal 5-13-3 road record this season. Two Cups will do that.
Canucks make it four-straight tonight.
AND ANOTHER THING…
Utica? For real?
Nikolay Goldobin draws a penalty and the Comets will go to the powerplay with 2:38 remaining in a 5-5 game!
What a crazy night in Utica!!!
The Comets were down 4-1 and have fought back to make this one a hell of a lot of fun.— Chris Faber 🤙🔥🎙 (@ChrisFaber39) December 28, 2019