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Canucks Army Post-Game: The Kids Comeback
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Photo credit: Candice Ward - USA TODAY Sports
J.D. Burke
Sep 21, 2017, 01:14 EDT
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Canucks go to Calgary; Defeat the Flames 5-3

It would have been easy for the Canucks to let this game slip from their clutches.
The same young, inexperienced Canucks group that was blown out 9-4 on Sunday night found themselves down two just five-plus minutes into this game. For a moment, it looked like they were still shellshocked.
They needed a veteran leader to drag them back into this game. And there was Anton Rodin, who is about the closest thing to a veteran left on this team, to finish a scoring play in traffic to get the Canucks on the board. Inexperience reared its ugly head again soon after, though, as a Jordan Subban turnover at the Canucks blue line turned into a Mark Jankowski goal in short order, as the Flames restored their two-goal lead in time for the second.
From there onward, though, it was all Vancouver. Brock Boeser split the Flames defence for his fourth goal of the pre-season to get the Canucks back within one. The youth movement continued in the form of Nikolay Goldobin and Jake Virtanen goals, the second of which was especially beautiful.
Jalen Chatfield finished his three-point night in the third period with the insurance goal, with a deft backhand on a Tyler Parsons rebound. That gave the Canucks a 5-3 lead that they wouldn’t relinquish.
Thatcher Demko played the entire game for the Canucks, stopping 23 of 26 Flames shots. Jon Gillies and Parsons split duties in the Flames net, stopping 25 of the Canucks 30 shots.

Stats

Quick Hits

  • At the expense of sounding like a broken record, it was another great night for Brock Boeser and Jake Virtanen. In Boeser’s case, I feel like he’s on his way to securing his roster spot in the Canucks top-six forward group. The goal he scored today was just amazing. I get the sense skating won’t be an issue for Boeser. As for Virtanen, he made an excellent backcheck to cover for a defenceman and break up a scoring play, and on the ensuing rush into the Calgary zone, Anton Rodin scored. Then Virtanen roofed the puck in the second period for a goal of his own. I’m starting to think Virtanen’s going to force himself into a bottom six role that might not have been there a month ago. How do you keep him off the roster if he keeps playing like this?
  • I’ve been fairly critical of Philip Holm this pre-season. He’s been something of an adventure in his zone, and some of his turnovers have found themselves in the back of the net. Then again, he keeps being one of if not the best Canucks possession player in huge minutes. Maybe I’m missing something? Perhaps those glaring mistakes are masking an otherwise sound game? Tonight is the first time I’ve pondered the possibility. He looked solid, and his underlying metrics were sterling. There might be something there.
  • Jalen Chatfield’s putting together a hell of a training camp. He was great in Penticton and the first star tonight, in just his first pre-season game. Small sample warnings abound, but Chatfield did find himself on the scoresheet three times. I thought Chatfield was a savvy signing by the Canucks last spring, but I didn’t anticipate he had this kind of offence in his game, even in exhibition matches. Chatfield might be closer to the NHL than anyone gave credit.
  • This was the first time in years I saw Cole Cassels and thought to myself he kind of looked like an NHL prospect. There wasn’t anything too special. Just a couple of solid defensive reads. Cassels can get a bit chippy behind the play, too, which I think serves his game. I was interested to see his underlying results matched with what I was seeing.

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