The Rundown

The Chicago Blackhawks hosting the Vancouver Canucks in late March without any playoff implications for either side — it’s been a while!
No Brock Boeser, no Jonathan Toews or Corey Crawford, and not a lot of happiness on either bench. However, there’s still some meaning in these games for young players and journeymen who are auditioning for jobs next season, including Nikolay Goldobin, Brendan Leipsic, Darren Archibald Tyler Motte and Derrick Pouliot. Let’s take a look and see how this game went down.

First Period

Chris Tanev got the play started in the defensive zone with a takeaway and pass to Leipsic all in one motion for the quick, controlled zone exit, Leipsic led the rush, gained the zone and made a sweet dish to Alex Edler who made no mistake, going against the grain for the nice finish. 1-0 Canucks.
Less than a minute later, the Chicago Blackhawks tied the game at one when Nick Schmaltz scored his 21st goal of the year.
A shade under ten minutes later, Henrik Sedin scored a goal! It was his first in 56 games and his third of the season.
Selfishly, I hope it’s not the twins last season in the NHL; they’ve combined to create some of my favourite hockey moments in my life with their Sedinery magic. I’m not sure I’m ready for a world without the Sedins in the NHL. The way things have gone this season, and next season not looking much better, I wonder if they even want to come back?
Troy Stecher had a tough first 20 minutes, had as many giveaways as controlled exits which led to a 31.25% shot share while he was on the ice.
That was nothing compared to the Nic Dowd, Darren Archibald, and Tyler Motte trio who got absolutely demolished at even strength. The Canucks had precisely zero shot attempts when they were on the ice through 20 — yikes.

Second Period

Seven minutes into the second period, Stecher makes a great stretch pass to Goldobin who draws his checker to the boards, spins and hits Bo Horvat in stride who flies into the zone and goes five-hole on J.F. Berube. Bo Horvat’s 20th goal of the season in his 56th game.  3-1, Canucks.
Alex Edler gets his second of the game, throwing it at the net, getting a fortunate bounce off of a Chicago defender. Primary assist to Horvat, secondary apple to Goldobin, both good for their second points of the game. 4-1 Canucks.

Third Period

The third period was kicked off by Brandon Sutter who earned his eighth goal of the season the hard way, as Michael Del Zotto’s point shot banked off his ankle and into the net to put the Canucks up 5-1.
Matthew Highmore would score his second of the season and the Blackhawks second of the game to make 5-2 with 3:30 remaining and that’s how this one would end!
The third period was ugly, Travis Green and the Canucks sat back and were outshot 27-9. It’s tough to blame them; a four-goal lead looks extra precious when you haven’t won a game since March 5th. The Canucks finally ended their ugly seven-game losing streak which saw them score only seven goals in that span.

The Numbers

Quick Hits

  •  I really liked Goldobin’s effort tonight. He had some shining moments with the puck, but was noticeably putting in just as much effort without the biscuit tonight. If he can maintain this consistent compete level for the remainder of the season, while continuing to setup teammates for scoring opportunities, I like his chances of earning on a spot on the roster for next season. I mean, Goldy’s shot assists/60 is second only to Henrik Sedin, there could be a player there if continues to battle!
  • Sam Gagner had a strong game with the Sedin’s tonight, leading the team in primary shot contributions with seven and was the only player to finish with a 50% shot share or better. He’s been wanting to play with the twins all year and finally got his chance and made the most of it. Unfortunately for Gagner, there’s just not that much hockey left this season for him turn his numbers around.
  • Jacob Markstrom had a strong game, stopping 39 of 41 shots, he was the primary reason the game wasn’t a barn burner tonight.
  • Tanev and Edler got buried in the defensive zone tonight, starting nearly 90% of their shifts in the defensive zone. This definitely didn’t help their shot share tonight, both finishing under 40%, Edler at 37.93%, and Tanev, a team low, 24.14%