Evening Headshots March 21st

Chris Higgins is out of the lineup for tonight’s game against Phoenix.
But don’t worry, he’s not injured (as is being reported elsewhere). He’s just joined the Wiserhood.

Today at Canucks Army we previewed tonight’s Canucks game against the Phoenix Coyotes, considered some NHL defensemen who the Canucks would do well to acquire at the trade deadline, investigated whether or not Alain Vigneault’s "trap it up" game plan was unique among NHL coaches (it’s obviously not) and looked at the unpredictable impact of a mid-season coaching change.

Read on past the jump if you want a longer recap of today’s Canucks news and assorted hot sports takes from around the internets.

If you want a quick chuckle, Wyatt Arndt handed out some light-hearted midseason awards to a variety of Canucks. [Legion of Blog]

If you want to drown in endless sorrow, Daniel Wagner broke down the assortment of bad injury news the Canucks recieved today. [Pass it to Bulis]

Henrik Sedin wants to see Daniel play a more selfish or "un-Swedish" style of hockey, he tells Ed Willes. That quote makes Henrik’s take on Daniel’s drop in production sound a lot more piquant than it is. Rather it’s just typically smart. Daniel’s shot rate has dropped marginally this season, which suggests that the top-line winger’s struggles are based on more than just "the bounces" or "finish" (though, come to think of it, I can think of five gimmes that Daniel has whiffed on over the past handful of games). [The Province]

This isn’t Canucks related, but it’s fun anyway. Ace puckhandler Martin Brodeur scored his third career goal today. Check it out. 

Speaking of fun, according to Dan Murphy (who would know) Keith Ballard will play in Vancouver’s top-nine forward group on Thursday night in Phoenix. 

I really have no idea. At least with Weise and Ballard that third line will be fast I guess? More likely, the Canucks are in for a long evening.

Fun highlight video of recent Canucks signee Ludwig Blomstrand. Skip to 4:15 for a really slick play.

Ben Kuzma praises AHL call up Andrew Gordon’s versatility. With Chris Higgins drawing out of the lineup tonight (in addition to Steve Pinizzotto’s injury and Zack Kassian’s) Gordon will likely be joined by one of his regular Wolves teammates in short order on this current Canucks roadtrip. Wither Nicklas Jensen? [The White Towel]

Tampa Bay signed highly sought after college defenseman Andrej Sustr today. The Canucks reportedly had an interest in the 6,8 puck mover but it’s not a surprise that they lost out considering the club’s back-end depth. Have to think they’ve got a better shot at Antoine Laganière.

Finally we’ll end this post with the Canucks’ late third period keep away shift against the St. Louis Blues. So awesome: