Tonight, the Vancouver Canucks return home to take on the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday night. The matchup will mark the Canucks’ 16th game of the season, and their ninth game of the season without centre Filip Chytil. Chytil was hurt in his first preseason game and missed the Canucks’ first eight games of the season as a result. And on Thursday night in San Jose, Chytil re-aggravated that injury, causing him to miss Friday’s practice and for the Canucks to already rule him out for tonight’s game.

Of course, the next-man-up mentality that NHL coaches preach naturally means that there are going to be Canucks players who have great opportunities to seize in Chytil’s absence. Here are three who come to mind.

Much has been made of Marco Rossi’s tough start to the season. Acquired last season in the Quinn Hughes trade, Rossi, the 9th overall selection in the 2020 NHL Draft, put up 22 points in 33 games down the final stretch of last season after arriving from Minnesota. Rossi showed real chemistry with Brock Boeser and Liam Öhgren on the BRÖ line and managed it all while playing through a foot injury, so expectations were certainly high heading into this season, having had the offseason to train and recover.

Unfortunately, it’s been a bit of a struggle for Rossi to start this season. He hasn’t looked as noticeable as he did last year, and the point totals haven’t been there, either. Rossi has three goals and two assists through 13 games so far this season, and has spent time at both centre and on the wing as Manny Malhotra has tried to get him going.

Most recently, Rossi has seen his ice time decline as a result of his lacklustre play. Through his first eight games of the season (which the Canucks played without Filip Chytil), Rossi’s average ice time was 17:08. In the five gamges since, Rossi’s average ice time has fallen to 13:31. In the Canucks’ 5-2 loss to the Detroit Red Wings on October 22nd, Rossi played a season-low 9 minutes and 38 seconds.

Chytil’s absence naturally means that Rossi should see his ice time increase to closer to what it was before Chytil came back the first time, and the onus is on Rossi to seize that opportunity and prove he can be a valuable contributor worthy of more ice time when Chytil eventually returns.

Perhaps even more obvious than Rossi is Jacob Quillan, the player the Canucks called up from AHL Abbotsford to replace Chytil. Quillan’s ice time might be somewhat limited, but the 24-year-old has a great opportunity to make an impact in limited minutes against his former team, given the timing of his call-up.

The Leafs traded Quillan, along with defenceman Brandon Buhr, to the Canucks in exchange for centre Aatu Räty earlier this month. Quillan is off to a hot start through five games with AHL Abbotsford, as the 24-year-old already has five goals and two assists to his credit. He’s been playing with a ton of pace, and while his scoring rate likely won’t translate in his first NHL game since April 15th, the Canucks are hoping Quillan can play with speed and find success in a bottom-six role.

Speaking of speed… Max Sasson finds himself in a similar conversation as Marco Rossi. Right from training camp, it was clear that Sasson, who found a ton of success in the AHL under Malhotra, was going to be one of the head coach’s more utilized players to begin the season.

Sasson logged a season-high 16:37 of ice time in the Canucks’ season-opening 6-5 overtime win over the Edmonton Oilers. He had a goal and an assist in that game and was vital to the Canucks’ efforts to neutralize Connor McDavid at 5v5 in that game. Since then, Sasson’s production and ice time have both become limited and sporadic.

In fact, Sasson’s last two games mark his two lowest ice time totals of the season. Against Anaheim, a game the Canucks won 6-5 in overtime, Sasson logged a season-low 9:42, and against San Jose, it was 10:37, Sasson’s second-lowest total of the season. Sasson’s last goals came on October 25th against the Minnesota Wild, and before that, on October 13th against the New York Islanders.

Like Rossi, Sasson should see his ice time increase in Chytil’s absence, and like Rossi, that gives him a chance to stand out and make an impact.

Who did we miss? Let us know in the comments section below!