Postgame: Gaudette and Canucks fall short against Coyotes in preseason finale
4 years ago
The Canucks concluded their preseason with a matchup against the Arizona Coyotes at Rogers Arena on Thursday.
The Canucks had a strong lineup for the preseason finale, including Elias Pettersson, Quinn Hughes, Tyler Myers and Alex Edler among others. Michael Ferland also returned to play his second preseason game after being sidelined with an illness this week. Jacob Markstrom got the start in goal.
Nikolay Goldobin, Adam Gaudette, Jake Virtanen, Loui Eriksson and Tim Schaller were among many “bubble” players given one final shot to prove they belong on the opening night roster. Gaudette has arguably been Vancouver’s best player this preseason and entered the game with an NHL-leading four preseason goals (four-way tie).
Travis Green talked before the game about the camp Jake Virtanen has had so far.
Brock Boeser is currently in concussion protocol after being boarded by Senators’ Chris Tierney in Monday’s preseason contest in Abbotsford. Josh Leivo took his spot on the top line with Petterson on Thursday.
The Coyotes, meanwhile, had a rather inexperienced roster for Thursday night’s game. Adin Hill got the start in goal with starter Antti Raanta dealing with a lower-body issue.
Highlights
Stats
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Summary
The Canucks got off on the right start when Michael Ferland scored on his own rebound just 1:20 into the game. The play was started by a great pass from Elias Pettersson. Lane Pederson answered for Arizona shorthanded midway through the period, but the Canucks got the lead back minutes later after Adam Gaudette set up Zack MacEwen with a brilliant no-look pass. The Coyotes took a 3-2 lead in the second period with back-to-back goals from Victor Soderstrom and Barrett Hayton. Carl Soderberg added an empty-net goal in the third period.
The Canucks weren’t able to generate much offense against a lackluster Arizona squad. They were outshot 35-19 and couldn’t capitalize on a couple power plays. The Canucks didn’t really have any serious offensive pressure until the final two minutes of the game when the goalie was pulled. The Canucks did have the lead on two different occasions, but it was Arizona goals scored 24 seconds apart in the second period that proved costly. A late push with Pettersson and Hughes creating chances wasn’t enough, as the Coyotes added the empty netter to secure a 4-2 victory.
The Canucks close out the preseason with a 4-4 record. They split the split-squad opener against the Flames before splitting a home-and-home with the Oilers. The Canucks fell 7-5 to the Kings in Salt Lake City before going 1-1 in two home games against Ottawa.
Game Notes
- Michael Ferland did pretty much exactly what he’s expected to do in Vancouver on his opening goal. Ferland went hard to the net and followed up on his own rebound to beat goaltender Hill. Jim Benning talked this summer about Ferland’s aggressive playing style and how he wants the Canucks to score more “dirty” goals this season.
- Adam Gaudette refuses to be denied a roster spot. He had a gorgeous goal last night against Ottawa and impressed again against Arizona. That’s an NHL-calibre assist on Zack MacEwen’s first-period goal. Not only is the pass perfect, but he somehow knew exactly where MacEwen was going to be. Gaudette has waiver ineligibility working against him, but he pretty much did everything he could this preseason to make the team. Now it’s up to the Canucks to make the call.
- The Canucks gave up shorthanded goals in back-to-back games to close out the preseason.It’ll be interesting to see if that impacts to how the power-play units look on opening night. Tyler Myers and Quinn Hughes got burned on the goal tonight against Arizona.
- Nikolay Goldobin only played 6:32 through the first two periods, but played a ton in the third period with the Canucks looking to tie it. Both Jake Virtanen and Goldobin were given lots of opportunities in the third period to try and earn their spot. They each finished with just over 13 minutes of ice time. Travis Green recently commented that Goldy had a “quiet camp”, while saying that Virtanen has just “kind of been there”. Both players failed to truly differentiate themselves from the competition this preseason, so it’ll be interesting to see if they make the opening night roster against Edmonton.
- Loui Eriksson was silent on Thursday night. He had no hits, no shots, one giveaway, no take-aways, and no blocked shots. That type of effort simply isn’t good enough when there’s other players working their butts off to try and make the team.
- This is no surprise, but Elias Pettersson is incredible. He said before the game that he wanted to have his best preseason game yet, and did not disappoint. Pettersson was dazzling with his dekes and showed off his strength with a reverse hit on Matt Bunting. He looks ready for a big season after his production tailed off at the end of 2018-19.
- The Canucks finish the preseason with 31 goals scored and 31 goals against. Alex Edler led the team in scoring with seven points (1G), while Pettersson (3G) and Gaudette (4G) tied for second with six points apiece.
*The final roster has to be submitted by 2:00 PM PST on Tuesday*
