Canucks Army THE GAME DAY – Canucks Vs. Golden Knights
By Always90four
4 years agoTHE INTRO
Positivity.
The Canucks are in the slump of slumps right now and they need positivity. I’ve been harsh on their efforts, their results, and their lack of change but they don’t need negativity. Right now, the Canucks need a bounce. Just one. The things that put them in the position to freak out are the things they need to get back to.
Back to basics.
Tonight, Vancouver gets a second chance to beat the Vegas Golden Knights, this time at home where they should hold court. Things have been tough lately but it doesn’t mean it can’t change on a dime. Ring of Honour inductee Alex Burrows helped flip the script against the Carolina Hurricanes in 2009 after a lengthy losing streak and they were able to make the playoffs that season.
Big changes need to happen but it starts with one game, it starts with one play, one goal. Vegas is a team that should have the Canucks number tonight but that’s exactly the reason the Canucks can bounce back.
Forget what you know about the Canucks this season. Forget the pain, forget the streaks, forget the mediocrity.
For one night give the Canucks the support they need so badly right now. For one night, be the spark. One spark can start a fire and the Canucks need to get hot in the worst way.
Let’s. Do. This!™
WHAT ARE THE ODDS?
The odds for tonight’s game are: (VAN +105/ VGK -125) courtesy of OddsShark.com
TV / RADIO / PUCK DROP
SNP / SN 650 / 7:00 PM
LINEUPS
Tim Schaller should get back in the lineup. His PK prowess is unmatched (well, it is but you know what I mean). The lines may change but it was somewhat close against the Canadiens. Tyler Myers needs a night off to “reflect”. Travis Green needs to be a coach and see that the multi-million dollar defenseman needs to re-evaluate his play. Even Loui Eriksson has been scratched for the same dollar amount.
Jacob Markstrom will start. Mike DiPietro will not.
Canucks lines courtesy of Dailyfaceoff.com:
| LW | C | RW | Forwards |
|---|---|---|---|
 ANTOINE ROUSSEL Rating: 71.6#87 LW |  BO HORVAT Rating: 74.9#43 C |  BROCK BOESER Rating: 76.1#18 RW | FL1 Rating Rating: 74.22#23 FL1 |
 J.T. MILLER Rating: 75.1#29 LW |  ELIAS PETTERSSON Rating: 78.3#17 C |  JAKE VIRTANEN Rating: 72.5#73 RW | FL2 Rating Rating: 75.29#8 FL2 |
 TANNER PEARSON Rating: 73.3#58 LW |  ADAM GAUDETTE Rating: 70.2#159 C |  JOSH LEIVO Rating: 72.5#71 RW | FL3 Rating Rating: 72.00#18 FL3 |
 TYLER MOTTE Rating: 69.4#178 LW |  JAY BEAGLE Rating: 68.2#190 C |  BRANDON SUTTER Rating: 71.0#139 RW | FL4 Rating Rating: 69.54#29 FL4 |
| DEFENSIVE PAIRINGS | Defense | |
|---|---|---|
 QUINN HUGHES Rating: 75.0#23 LD |  CHRIS TANEV Rating: 71.8#86 RD | DL1 Rating Rating: 73.39#24 DL1 |
 OSCAR FANTENBERG Rating: 72.2#81 LD |  TYLER MYERS Rating: 73.0#54 RD | DL2 Rating Rating: 72.63#24 DL2 |
 JORDIE BENN Rating: 70.8#104 LD |  TROY STECHER Rating: 71.5#95 RD | DL3 Rating Rating: 71.14#26 DL3 |
No changes to the Golden Knights. Expect to see a very similar, if not the same lineup as a few nights ago.
Marc-Andre Fleury got the best of the Canucks last time and every point counts so expect him to be back in net tonight.
Golden Knights lines courtesy of Dailyfaceoff.com:
| LW | C | RW | Forwards |
|---|---|---|---|
 JONATHAN MARCHESSAULT Rating: 74.8#34 LW |  WILLIAM KARLSSON Rating: 75.0#41 C |  REILLY SMITH Rating: 75.5#26 RW | FL1 Rating Rating: 75.09#16 FL1 |
 MAX PACIORETTY Rating: 80.3#4 LW |  CHANDLER STEPHENSON Rating: 70.1#160 C |  MARK STONE Rating: 77.8#8 RW | FL2 Rating Rating: 76.06#4 FL2 |
 VALENTIN ZYKOV Rating: 71.6#86 LW |  PAUL STASTNY Rating: 75.0#40 C |  ALEX TUCH Rating: 74.4#33 RW | FL3 Rating Rating: 73.70#2 FL3 |
 WILL CARRIER Rating: 71.3#95 LW |  TOMAS NOSEK Rating: 70.7#146 C |  RYAN REAVES Rating: 70.6#107 RW | FL4 Rating Rating: 70.87#18 FL4 |
| DEFENSIVE PAIRINGS | Defense | |
|---|---|---|
 BRAYDEN MCNABB Rating: 72.4#73 LD |  NATE SCHMIDT Rating: 74.8#24 RD | DL1 Rating Rating: 73.63#20 DL1 |
 NICOLAS HAGUE Rating: 73.5#9 LD |  SHEA THEODORE Rating: 77.4#5 RD | DL2 Rating Rating: 75.42#3 DL2 |
 NICK HOLDEN Rating: 73.7#42 LD |  DERYK ENGELLAND Rating: 73.2#50 RD | DL3 Rating Rating: 73.46#5 DL3 |
GAME NOTES AND A STAT OR TWO
- Brock Boeser has three goals in 13 games, one on the PP. He has yet to crack 30 in a season and he’ll need to get back to basics if he wants to get close. Brock is the guy that needs to lead the goal scoring charge and a big night against Vegas can boost his stock. He has the touch but he looks lost right now.
- Jake Virtanen has low-key been a star this season for the Canucks. He has 3G/5A in his last 10 games and is well on his way to cracking the 20-goal mark for the first time in his career. Virtanen looks comfortable out there and seems to have figured out the kind of player he needs to be to succeed. At some point, the bonuses will come (physicality, easy garbage goals, etc) but for now, he’s making plays off the rush and getting involved everywhere including the power play.
- Speaking of the power play, Vancouver needs to get something dynamic going. They have gone 6/27 in their last 10 games, good for 22.2%. Not bad. They have been shutout with the man advantage four times in that span and six of the 10 games have only created two opportunities each. When the season began the Canucks were creating 4-6 opportunities per game. This kind of hockey needs to return.
- Vegas and Vancouver are equal opportunists when it comes to the shot clock. Both teams have seven wins when they’ve been outshot this season and considering the Canucks have figured out how to put up more shots this season, Vegas doesn’t seem to care. That being said, Vegas leads the Canucks 12-8 in wins when they outshoot their opponent.
- J.T. Miller is sitting on 69 career PPG, wouldn’t it be nice to hit #70 against Vegas? Ya, it would.
#CANUCKSTWITTER
Interesting to see a take like this. Boucher has been a phenomenal AHLer and hasn’t been terrible on the big club. Not sure if the Canucks want to call him up over the younger prospects though.
I mean, I love the Canucks but…
MY 94 CENTS
I crapped on the Canucks pretty heavily last game but it was deserved. I was mad, I was sad, but I felt I deserved better as a fan. Tonight, I preach patience. There is a realistic chance the Canucks make the playoffs and they built up an impressive buffer to start the season which the clearly needed.
Now, it’s time to put in the work. They are going to hit a few rough patches this season and they’ll be challenged but at the end of it, I still believe it’s possible to play game 83. Just when we think we know what the Canucks are going to do, they #flipthescript. They’ll need a Herculean effort tonight against a team that has no business losing to the lowly Canucks but that’s exactly the reason for Vancouver to win this one.
One win won’t change anything but it’s a start.
I’m willing to see it through. I also don’t have much of a choice.
AND ANOTHER THING…
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