Canucks Army Game Day 4 – Canucks @ Lightning (More Defense Edition)
By Always90four
5 years agoTHE INTRO
This isn’t Carolina, there is no Viking clap awaiting the Canucks following this game but if they continue to allow a wheelbarrow full of goals a game, they may as well have that recorded on every jumbotron in the league. Tonight, the Canucks face the Lightning in Tampa Bay for their third game of the six-game road trip. No wins to speak of thus far and it won’t get any easier against a strong Lightning squad that includes some guy named Stamkos.
There are signs of life with the Canucks as the youth movement is slowly increasing. Is goaltending the next targeted scratch?
Let’s Do This!™
TV / RADIO / PUCK DROP
SNP / SN 650 / 4:30 PM
LINEUPS
Tough to say if any one player could be picked out of the lineup but maybe Markus Granlund gets a turn eating popcorn in the press box? A Tyler Motte resurgence may be possible as well. Michael Del Zotto hasn’t been the biggest problem on the back end but after watching Erik Gudbranson and Derrick Pouliot use their net as a shield, what is bad anymore?
Changes have been made everywhere else, might Anders Nilsson get his first start tonight?
Canucks lines courtesy of Dailyfaceoff.com:
| LW | C | RW | Forwards |
|---|---|---|---|
 Tyler Motte Rating: 68.9#132 LW |  BO HORVAT Rating: 74.6#51 C |  BROCK BOESER Rating: 79.2#7 RW | FL1 Rating Rating: 74.24#27 FL1 |
 NIKOLAY GOLDOBIN Rating: 72.0#75 LW |  ELIAS PETTERSSON |  LOUI ERIKSSON Rating: 73.2#50 RW | FL2 Rating Rating: 72.60#26 FL2 |
 SVEN BAERTSCHI Rating: 72.6#64 LW |  BRANDON SUTTER Rating: 72.1#104 C |  JAKE VIRTANEN Rating: 69.9#98 RW | FL3 Rating Rating: 71.51#24 FL3 |
 TIM SCHALLER Rating: 68.8#130 LW |  JAY BEAGLE Rating: 68.7#171 C |  MARKUS GRANLUND Rating: 71.5#81 RW | FL4 Rating Rating: 69.68#24 FL4 |
| DEFENSIVE PAIRINGS | Defense | |
|---|---|---|
 ALEXANDER EDLER Rating: 73.9#36 LD |  CHRIS TANEV Rating: 70.9#78 RD | DL1 Rating Rating: 72.42#26 DL1 |
 DERRICK POULIOT Rating: 71.0#89 LD |  ERIK GUDBRANSON Rating: 69.9#88 RD | DL2 Rating Rating: 70.47#29 DL2 |
 BEN HUTTON Rating: 70.1#109 LD |  TROY STECHER Rating: 70.4#84 RD | DL3 Rating Rating: 70.26#27 DL3 |
Tyler Johnson is most likely in the lineup tonight which gives Tampa a solid top-six. No other expected changes to their lineup have surfaced.
Andrei Vasilevskiy will start.
Lightning lines courtesy of Dailyfaceoff.com:
| LW | C | RW | Forwards |
|---|---|---|---|
 ONDREJ PALAT Rating: 77.0#20 LW |  STEVEN STAMKOS Rating: 79.4#21 C |  NIKITA KUCHEROV Rating: 85.4#1 RW | FL1 Rating Rating: 80.57#5 FL1 |
 YANNI GOURDE Rating: 75.8#26 LW |  BRAYDEN POINT Rating: 79.5#20 C |  TYLER JOHNSON Rating: 73.9#62 RW | FL2 Rating Rating: 76.40#7 FL2 |
 ALEX KILLORN Rating: 73.9#63 LW |  ANTHONY CIRELLI Rating: 73.5#68 C |  MATHIEU JOSEPH | FL3 Rating Rating: 73.66#1 FL3 |
 ADAM ERNE Rating: 71.2#88 LW |  J.T. MILLER Rating: 73.8#66 C |  CORY CONACHER Rating: 71.5#79 RW | FL4 Rating Rating: 72.15#1 FL4 |
| DEFENSIVE PAIRINGS | Defense | |
|---|---|---|
 VICTOR HEDMAN Rating: 80.4#2 LD |  DAN GIRARDI Rating: 71.7#63 RD | DL1 Rating Rating: 76.07#14 DL1 |
 RYAN MCDONAGH Rating: 75.7#22 LD |  ANTON STRALMAN Rating: 74.0#35 RD | DL2 Rating Rating: 74.89#10 DL2 |
 BRAYDON COBURN Rating: 70.7#97 LD |  MIKHAIL SERGACHEV Rating: 73.6#37 RD | DL3 Rating Rating: 72.12#13 DL3 |
INFORMATION YOU NEED AND SOME YOU DON’T
- Erik Gudbranson hasn’t started his season very well. He’s tied for third in the league in PIM with nine, of 204 defensemen that have played so far this season he’s 56th in fewest minutes played per game, and I haven’t even mentioned his “eye test”. The Canucks need to seriously look at Gudbranson and ask themselves if they made a mistake (the answer is yes, yes they did). Rebuilding this franchise will have bumps and bruises but there is no way this team progresses with the defensive unit they currently have. It’s so wrong and posts like this may need to be copied and pasted at a certain point because this will not be the last time this is said.
- More on Gudbranson – His Zone Start Ratio is the second highest on the Canucks 5v5 with massive 59.29%. Gudbranson gets the second-highest offensive zone starts on the team and only his partner Derrick Pouliot is higher (not including Ben Hutton’s one game played). Is he the guy you want starting an offensive push?
- Three games into the season and it’s already abundantly clear the Canucks are being outshot. Derrick Pouliot is the only defender with a plus-50 Corsi rating on the Canucks that have played more than one game. That will change soon and it may be for other reasons like being waived or scratched. When the rest of the team is concerned, it’s almost just as bad.
- Elias Pettersson may save Loui Eriksson and Nikolay Goldobin’s careers in more ways than one. Offensively, they’ve been awarded the golden goose and he’s making both of those players look pretty, pretty good. Going back to the shot numbers, those three players are the only ones above 50% as well after the players already mentioned. Eriksson more than anyone needs to utilize the Pettersson line because he has only one single shot on net to speak of and assists aren’t going to keep him on that line. Shoot first, earn contracts later… no wait, that’s wrong.
- Running with the theme of defense today, Troy Stecher is doing his part. Stecher already has five takeaways and is only two back of the league-lead. He’s literally playing for keeps. Chris Tanev, Brandon Sutter, and Jake Virtanen all have three. There are some bright lights on this team but you have to dig a bit.
- Quinn Hughes is a long way away still, folks.
MY 94 CENTS
The Lightning has only played one game to start the season. It’s the equivalent of the start of school and then having a Pro-D Day the next Friday. Thankfully for the Canucks, they’ve played three games so far and have a pretty good idea of what team they have become. There will be goal scoring and there may even be some Elias Petterson dekes and I’m still holding out for the Brock Boeser breakout game.
One thing I know very well is that Jim Benning needs to address his horrendous defensive unit. Alex Edler is playing way too many minutes for anyone’s liking and it will most definitely cost yet another injury to the veteran Swede. Chris Tanev and Troy Stecher are the only other serviceable defensemen on this team and how they signed Gudbranson to the deal he was offered, we’ll never know. Olli Juolevi needs to rock his game in Utica because this team needs help.
As for goaltending, Thatcher Demko, get ready to book a plane ticket.
THE FINAL WORD
This may end up being the Canucks season in a nutshell or maybe a net.
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