CANUCKS ARMY GDT# 21 – CANUCKS VS. BLACKHAWKS

8 years ago

Normally, this game is one of the must-see matchups of the year. Chicago and Vancouver always bring a competitive edge to their games and with the playoff history, questionable hits and Patrick Kane’s ability to party, this one is always in the headlines. I know I can’t wait for it and maybe the Canucks can pull a win out of their hats against a perennial Stanley Cup favourite. Tonight we’ll see.

BROADCAST INFO

TV: CBC (HNIC)

RADIO: TSN 1040

PUCK DROP: 7 PM

LINEUPS

Luca Sbisa dinged up a few digits in his fight against Inspector Peluso, but he will be ready to play. Brandon Prust will also be back in the lineup after being out for awhile. Sadly, fan favourite and dancing superstar Ben Hutton will not play and Brandon Sutter is still in the press box as well. Slumping Radim Vrbata is also on the shelf. This team is going to be challenged.

Ryan Miller is in net.

Vancouver Canucks lines courtesy of Dailyfaceoff.com:

LW	C	RW
Daniel Sedin	Henrik Sedin	Jannik Hansen
Chris Higgins	Jared McCann	Alexandre Grenier
Alexandre Burrows	Bo Horvat	Jake Virtanen
Sven Baertschi	Adam Cracknell	Derek Dorsett

Defensive Pairings
Alexander Edler	Chris Tanev
Dan Hamhuis	Luca Sbisa
Ben Hutton	Matt Bartkowsk

Never a dull moment when the Hawks come to town, they’re rolling with free man Patrick Kane making a mockery of the league leaders boards. Lifers Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook will no doubt give the Canucks headaches once more, but they might not even have to with the lineup the Hawks have. Be easy on them Chicago.

Corey Crawford will be in net.

Chicago Blackhawks lines courtesy of Dailyfaceoff.com:

LW	C	RW
Andrew Shaw	Jonathan Toews	Marian Hossa
Artemi Panarin	Artem Anisimov	Patrick Kane
Brandon Mashinter	Marcus Kruger	Andrew Desjardins
Viktor Tikhonov	Tanner Kero	Ryan Garbutt

Defensive Pairings
Duncan Keith	Niklas Hjalmarsson
Trevor van Riemsdyk	Brent Seabrook
Trevor Daley	Michal Rozsival

REASONS TO WATCH THIS GAME

Uh, it’s Nucks/Hawks. Should I continue typing or do you actually need reasons for this one?
Apparently Chicago had a game last night against some Calgary club? I’d say easy pickings but in the words of Mary Poppins “That’s about as good as a pie crust promise, easy to make easy to break” Or something like that.
After a dismal road trip that saw the Canucks barely beat the Blue Jackets (yep that’s it), the first home game is against of course the Hawks. Player’s meetings aside, this Canucks team needs help and they need it quick. True Detective season 2 has been more entertaining and that’s not saying much.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING

MY TAKE

The Canucks are a mess right now. I don’t think they’ll win. Nothing is convincing to me up and down this lineup and Ben Hutton isn’t playing. If it gets to OT somehow, our chances are worse. Chicago doesn’t dummy the Canucks, but they still win. At the very least, I will say the Canucks will make it entertaining and close. I’m fine with that.