CANUCKS ARMY GDT 77 – CANUCKS VS. DUCKS (no early goals edition)
By Always90four
6 years agoThere’s a party about to break out at Rogers Arena this evening. Everyone’s* favourite team, the Anaheim Ducks, have come to Vancouver and have a date with your Vancouver Canucks.
It wasn’t even close the last time these two teams faced each other and rightfully so — Anders Nilsson was in net. What the Canucks will have to figure out is how they’ll keep the Ducks off the board for at least the first five minutes of the game, or as I’m calling it, the “Fresh Five”.
It’s no secret the Canucks have been charitable immediately after the opening puck drop but now it’s getting a little ridiculous and if Canucks head coach Travis Green wants his team to have a shot by the third period, he’ll need to make sure his team isn’t playing from behind after the first whistle.
Let’s Do This!™
(* actually only a few people)
WATCH / LISTEN / FACE-OFF
TV: SNET-P / RADIO: SN 650 / PUCK DROP: 7:00 PM
LINE COMBINATIONS
No Adam Gaudette, no Chris Tanev, potentially no Brendan Leipsic either. I would not put out the Bo Horvat line or the Sedin line to start the game, though. They’ve been on the ice for a decent amount of the “Fresh Five” goals. More on this below.
Jacob Markstrom should be the only goalie starting now until the end of the season… no matter what. Seriously.
Vancouver Canucks lines courtesy of Dailyfaceoff.com:
| LW | C | RW |
|---|---|---|
 NIKOLAY GOLDOBIN Rating: 68.9#106 LW |  BO HORVAT Rating: 74.4#67 C |  JUSSI JOKINEN Rating: 71.4#78 RW |
 DANIEL SEDIN Rating: 72.7#61 LW |  HENRIK SEDIN Rating: 70.8#156 C |  SAM GAGNER Rating: 71.9#116 RW |
 DARREN ARCHIBALD Rating: 70.6#99 LW |  BRANDON SUTTER Rating: 71.1#149 C |  JAKE VIRTANEN Rating: 70.4#81 RW |
 REID BOUCHER Rating: 71.3#142 LW |  NIC DOWD Rating: 70.0#179 C |  TYLER MOTTE Rating: 67.5#219 RW |
| DEFENSIVE PAIRINGS | |
|---|---|
 ALEXANDER EDLER Rating: 73.2#87 LD |  TROY STECHER Rating: 71.2#178 RD |
 MICHAEL DEL ZOTTO Rating: 71.9#140 LD |  DERRICK POULIOT Rating: 70.2#214 RD |
 ASHTON SAUTNER Rating: 72.2#120 LD |  ALEX BIEGA Rating: 68.8#246 RD |
Troy Terry will get every opportunity to play tonight. It’s the Canucks so it’s also entirely possible he scores too! Ducks beat Edmonton the other night so Terry may be the only change.
Give Ryan Miller another start against the Canucks.
Anaheim Ducks lines courtesy of Dailyfaceoff.com:
| LW | C | RW |
|---|---|---|
 RICKARD RAKELL Rating: 79.6#16 LW |  RYAN GETZLAF Rating: 82.2#8 C |  COREY PERRY Rating: 73.9#35 RW |
 ANDREW COGLIANO Rating: 71.1#148 LW |  RYAN KESLER Rating: 74.5#66 C |  JAKOB SILFVERBERG Rating: 74.4#37 RW |
 NICK RITCHIE Rating: 71.4#77 LW |  ADAM HENRIQUE Rating: 74.9#62 C |  ONDREJ KASE Rating: 74.3#31 RW |
 JASON CHIMERA Rating: 69.9#109 LW |  DEREK GRANT Rating: 69.3#193 C |  CHRIS KELLY Rating: 67.7#218 RW |
| DEFENSIVE PAIRINGS | |
|---|---|
 CAM FOWLER Rating: 77.1#33 LD |  BRANDON MONTOUR Rating: 75.2#48 RD |
 MARCUS PETTERSSON |  HAMPUS LINDHOLM Rating: 77.6#27 RD |
 FRANCOIS BEAUCHEMIN Rating: 72.7#103 LD |  KORBINIAN HOLZER Rating: 68.3#252 RD |
NO EARLY GOALS / KEYS TO THE FIRST PERIOD
- Giving up the early goal has been the Canucks specialty this season and not just early, many times in the first five minutes of the game. Who’s to blame, though?
- Vancouver has given up the first goal of the game in the first five minutes of play 22 times this season, astounding! Of those 22 games, they’ve gone down a goal in the first minute of the game seven times. The first minute! Playing for a lottery pick is the result of not being ready, being complacent, and having the wrong players to start a game.
- Everyone talks about getting the Sedins off the start of OT or trying to create a more dynamic powerplay and the start of the game is just as important. The Canucks have been an awful team for a few seasons now so trotting out Henrik and Daniel in the first two shifts doesn’t accomplish much. If I’m the Canucks, I roll out Brandon Sutter’s line or the Nic Dowd line and clog the game up. Eliminate the flow of teams that are clearly better and after an offside or stoppage of play then put out the top two lines.
- On defense, it’s a smorgasbord of who’s to blame but Michael Del Zotto and Ben Hutton seem to be recurring characters when that first early goal is scored. In net, Anders Nilsson has been to blame at least four times, not just in the net but actually to blame, on insanely soft shots, most recently a little while ago in Las Vegas.
- When the Canucks have put a proper defensive effort together early on they have ended up screening their goalies which have been the cause for three early goals. It hasn’t just been one method that has burned the Canucks but they’ve had way too many mistakes that have created a real cause for concern. Travis Green needs to look at the game a bit more like an NFL coach and have a lot more situational shifts created instead of just line matching or finding a hot hand. Those shifts are reserved for teams on the better side of a winning record.
- When it rains it pours. Vancouver went on two separate runs where they gave up the “Fresh Five” in three straight games. Consistent, I guess?
- Honorary mention is given to the unofficial 23rd “Fresh Five” goal which would be the Islanders Andrew Ladd’s SHG 0:23 seconds after the five minute cut off. I’m counting it. Nilsson was in net if anyone cares.
A MODERATE TWITTER TAKE
Not even sticking up for CA here but take a loss man. In this case, the comment wasn’t directed at any “one” person. Follow the macro-story, not the micro one. I guess you made it here so that’s big news.
MY 95 CENTS
(currently locked out)
WHAT WE’LL LEARN FROM THIS GAME
- Everyone in Vancouver will still hate Ryan Kesler, well except for myself because we’re bros.
Just two bros hangin out
- Kevin Bieksa and Radek Faksa would be by far the best sounding teammates in the league.
- This isn’t actually the worst Canucks team ever, but it’s close.
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