Canucks Army Game Day 12 – Canucks vs. Penguins (The Return Edition)
By Always90four
5 years agoTHE INTRO
Today could be the day.
Today could be the return of the Canucks meal ticket, Elias Pettersson. It also could be the day Brock Boeser returns to the lineup, Chris Tanev joins his team, and an entire province can exhale. The wait, although excruciating, hasn’t been as long as it could be for some players so if Pettersson does indeed play tonight, it’s a massive win for him personally. Sidney Crosby suffered a concussion that many thought could have ended his career at a certain point. You just never know.
Tuesday night the Canucks felt like they lost half their lineup, they almost did. Tonight, the entire team could be fixed with one shift. It’s all eyes on Pettersson and the next round of “was that shot lucky?”
Let’s Do This!™
TV / RADIO / PUCK DROP
CBC / SN 650 / 7:00 PM
LINEUPS
Alex Edler is still out, Sven Baertschi is still in concussion protocol, but that won’t bring us down. The Canucks might just make some noise again and all is well in the world.
Jacob Markstrom looks like he’ll be in the starters net tonight. Go get ’em big guy!
Justin Schultz is out until most likely the All-Star break with a broken leg. The Penguins beat the Flames 9-1 the other night so you don’t change a lineup like that.
Matt Murray hopes he will be the lucky one tonight when he gets the start against the Canucks.
Penguins lines courtesy of Dailyfaceoff.com:
| LW | C | RW | Forwards |
|---|---|---|---|
 JAKE GUENTZEL Rating: 78.8#14 LW |  SIDNEY CROSBY Rating: 86.5#3 C |  DERICK BRASSARD Rating: 72.7#97 RW | FL1 Rating Rating: 79.33#11 FL1 |
 CARL HAGELIN Rating: 72.1#78 LW |  EVGENI MALKIN Rating: 86.0#5 C |  PHIL KESSEL Rating: 79.2#15 RW | FL2 Rating Rating: 79.06#1 FL2 |
 RILEY SHEAHAN Rating: 69.4#179 LW |  MATT CULLEN Rating: 69.6#177 C |  PATRIC HORNQVIST Rating: 77.9#18 RW | FL3 Rating Rating: 72.27#13 FL3 |
 DOMINIK SIMON Rating: 70.3#106 LW |  DEREK GRANT Rating: 69.3#180 C |  BRYAN RUST Rating: 73.1#59 RW | FL4 Rating Rating: 70.92#13 FL4 |
| DEFENSIVE PAIRINGS | Defense | |
|---|---|---|
 BRIAN DUMOULIN Rating: 74.5#28 LD |  KRIS LETANG Rating: 81.8#3 RD | DL1 Rating Rating: 78.16#5 DL1 |
 OLLI MAATTA Rating: 72.2#72 LD |  CHAD RUHWEDEL Rating: 70.9#80 RD | DL2 Rating Rating: 71.56#27 DL2 |
 JACK JOHNSON Rating: 70.7#105 LD |  JAMIE OLEKSIAK Rating: 71.8#65 RD | DL3 Rating Rating: 71.26#19 DL3 |
INFORMATION YOU NEED AND SOME YOU DON’T
- Unreal. Since October 2010, the Canucks have played the Penguins 12 times. Henrik Sedin and Brock Boeser are tied with seven points apiece, however, Brock has only played in three of those games while Henrik was in 11. Bo Horvat has six points in eight games versus the Penguins. If you’re wondering about the future of the Canucks, I’d say it could be OK.
- Loui Eriksson’s next power play goal will be his 60th career PPG. If he gets it done tonight it will also be his first goal of the season and first goal since February 17th when he had two against the Bruins.
- Evgeni Malkin is already among the league-leaders in points and has done so out of the spotlight behind the Penguins Captain Sidney Crosby. Malkin does lead the NHL in P/GP with 1.88. It won’t be easy keeping him off the scoresheet tonight.
- Quick tidbit (semi-pun intended), Tim Horton’s hockey cards this season are super dull. I have yet to get a sound card that I’m withholding from my kids. They need to get back to the good ol’ days when McDonald’s charged 39 cents a pack. Stop gouging us, Tim! This is a problem Sidney Crosby could solve.
- Jake Virtanen has been in a thieving mood so far this season. His 12 takeaways are tied for sixth overall with at least six games played. His 200-foot game has improved and safe to say both Bo Horvat and Elias Pettersson are prime examples of what hard work looks like. An army of 200-foot players could make the Canucks an exciting team to watch down the stretch.
MY 94 CENTS
Pettersson is back. Boeser is back. Matt Murray should be very concerned. The beauty of a game like tonight is seeing two of the league’s proven best players (Crosby/Malkin) take on two rising stars that could one day take that mantle in Boeser and Pettersson. Talent alone, this game should be a lot of fun. It also would be great if Boeser were to ignite his scoring touch against a goalie that he gave fits only a season ago.
THE FINAL WORD
It’s time.
Recent articles from Always90four
