Canucks cruise to a 5-2 win over the Philadelphia Flyers

The Numbers

Quick Hits

• Boeser’s two goals give him 17 points in as many games. The Corsica.Hockey expected goals model had him at just 0.25 of a goal, for whatever that’s worth. Boeser had just the two shots to his credit, but he made them count. Should we expect night’s like these to repeat themselves over a prolonged sample? I’m going to say no. Who cares though? It’s god damned fun!
• The Canucks had this game in the bag by about the halfway mark, so it could be easy to lose sight of how well Jacob Markstrom played in tonight’s game. I’m not sure I’d classify either of the two goals he surrendered as a softie. In fact, the Corsica.Hockey expected goals model had the Flyers down for 2.2 expected goals. Markstrom didn’t have to make any ten-bell saves — none that I can remember — but was solid throughout and always there to bail out the Canucks when they needed the support.
• Derrick Pouliot had a bounce-back game for the Canucks. According to the transitional data that Darryl Keeping is kind enough to track for the Canucks community, Pouliot didn’t have a single failed exit (turnover, incomplete pass or icing) from Vancouver’s zone. The pass Pouliot made on Boeser’s first goal was great. The defensive results left a lot to be desired. Pouliot had a -12 shot share at five-on-five. I’m not going to rake him over the coals for that. Everyone on the Canucks was in the red by that lens. In fact, when you adjust for the score, Pouliot’s nearly at a 50% clip.
• Loui Eriksson continues his roll. Since returning from a knee sprain, Eriksson has five points in six games including his first goal tonight into an empty-net. I always had faith Eriksson would bounce back. His contract isn’t necessarily awful considering he was an unrestricted free agent and what some of his comparables got, but it doesn’t suit the Canucks cycle. Because of that, I think people are all too eager to lose sight of the fact that Eriksson is still a legitimately great two-way forward. Last year, Eriksson had among the highest WAR (Wins Above Replacement) ratings among Canucks forwards. All signs pointed to Eriksson being painfully unlucky. That he’s bounced back the way he has so far this season, even if the goals aren’t there just yet, indicates that was probably true.
• The Canucks might be onto something with their new power play configurations. Both units are scoring and in bunches. They’ve converted on five of their last 12 chances over a four-game span. We, and I mean the royal we of course, were rightly harsh on Canucks assistant coach Newell Brown for his work with the power play in the early parts of the season. By all accounts, Brown is a student of the game and a tireless learner. According to one of Canucks Twitters own Sir Earl, Brown is constantly taking notes during the game. He’s putting them to good use of late. Boeser is in the right spot, finally, and there’s a good balance of talent and offsetting skills through both units.
• Markus Granlund appears to be turning a corner. The shot contributions data that Keeping tracks suggests that Granlund was doing a lot of the legwork in getting the puck on net, whether that’s shooting the puck himself or setting his teammates up with the puck so they can. Granlund was strong in transition, too. The Canucks need scoring throughout the lineup, so the importance of getting him going can’t be understated. I’m starting to see reasons for optimism that he just might turn the corner, and I didn’t see that before two or three games ago.