Welcome back to Instant Reaction, the series here at CanucksArmy where we give you our instant reaction to tonight’s Vancouver Canucks game and ask our readers to do the same in the comments section below!
After a stellar performance from Kevin Lankinen in what was a bit of a lock-it-down snoozefest on Tuesday night, tonight&#8217;s first goal came much sooner than it did last night. Arturs Silovs overcommitted on a point shot and couldn&#8217;t stop Blake Lizotte&#8217;s follow up chance, which made it 1-0 Penguins on Pittsburgh&#8217;s first shot of the game.
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Blake Lizzote plays the carom off the boards perfectly to put the puck past Arturs Silovs, and the Penguins lead 1-0.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Canucks?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Canucks</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LetsGoPens?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LetsGoPens</a> 🎥: Sportsnet | NHL <a href="https://t.co/PNXdwChcNM">pic.twitter.com/PNXdwChcNM</a>
&mdash; CanucksArmy (@CanucksArmy) <a href="https://twitter.com/CanucksArmy/status/1861934522646024209?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 28, 2024</a></blockquote>
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It&#8217;s also worth mentioning this play happened because Filip Hronek made a dreadful cross-ice pass to Quinn Hughes that allowed Pittsburgh to take possession. Not the start they were looking for, to say the least!
After a strong first shift from the fourth line, Max Sasson and Nils Höglander got in on the forecheck, and Aatu Räty scored his second goal of the season after his wingers caused a turnover that ended up right on his tape. 1-1. 
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CANUCKS SCORRREE Aatu Räty&#39;s first shot is blocked, but he makes no mistake on the second to tie the game at 1!<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Canucks?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Canucks</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LetsGoPens?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LetsGoPens</a> 🎥: Sportsnet | NHL <a href="https://t.co/04jVJKTzmJ">pic.twitter.com/04jVJKTzmJ</a>
&mdash; CanucksArmy (@CanucksArmy) <a href="https://twitter.com/CanucksArmy/status/1861936923625009594?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 28, 2024</a></blockquote>
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The Canucks gave up the game&#8217;s next goal after becoming a little too stationary in the defensive end. Rickard Rakell tipped home a Bryan Rust pass past Silovs to make it 2-1 Penguins. Soucy and Juulsen was a trip.
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Penguins score. Rickard Rakell is left wide open in front of the net to tip the puck over Silovs and in, 2-1 Pens.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Canucks?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Canucks</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LetsGoPens?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LetsGoPens</a> 🎥: Sportsnet | NHL <a href="https://t.co/lgnVBMSJMr">pic.twitter.com/lgnVBMSJMr</a>
&mdash; CanucksArmy (@CanucksArmy) <a href="https://twitter.com/CanucksArmy/status/1861939092692578620?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 28, 2024</a></blockquote>
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Looking for a spark, Tocchet sent out his new energy line of Höglander-Räty-Sasson, but Räty got his stick up in the neutral zone and was called for high sticking. It also could have been cross-checking, but his stick was certainly high, so the call felt appropriate.
On what was their second power play opportunity of the game, Kevin Hayes buried a loose puck in Silovs&#8217; goal crease to quickly make it 3-1 Penguins.
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Penguins score again, Kevin Hayes gets an open look at the rebound on the power play, 3-1 Pittsburgh.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Canucks?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Canucks</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LetsGoPens?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LetsGoPens</a> 🎥: Sportsnet | NHL <a href="https://t.co/8JUuFvWykk">pic.twitter.com/8JUuFvWykk</a>
&mdash; CanucksArmy (@CanucksArmy) <a href="https://twitter.com/CanucksArmy/status/1861940476703846688?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 28, 2024</a></blockquote>
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The Penguins kept coming, as Sidney Crosby set up Rust for a cross-ice tap in to make it 4-1 Penguins.
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Sidney Crosby to Bryan Rust to the back of the net. Penguins blow this game wide open in the first, 4-1 Pittsburgh.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Canucks?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Canucks</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LetsGoPens?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LetsGoPens</a> 🎥: Sportsnet | NHL <a href="https://t.co/HeqejNHCKS">pic.twitter.com/HeqejNHCKS</a>
&mdash; CanucksArmy (@CanucksArmy) <a href="https://twitter.com/CanucksArmy/status/1861941226142073070?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 28, 2024</a></blockquote>
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Here&#8217;s my takeaway from each of these goals:
Hronek and Silovs are to blame for the first goal. Carson Soucy is completely lost on the second one. Canucks leave the middle of the ice (or the GOTI, as we call it here) wide open on the third and fourth goals.
And yes, four goals on nine shots just isn&#8217;t good enough. Don&#8217;t give me the &#8220;those are grade-A chances!&#8221; excuse either. You&#8217;re allowed to stop those ones too, and at the NHL level, plenty of goalies do. With Demko&#8217;s return on the horizon, this was likely the last we see of Arturs Silovs for a while.
Now let&#8217;s get to the second period&#8230;
Bryan Rust let go of a snap shot off the rush that beat Silovs cleanly on the glove side, as this one went to 5-1 Penguins. 
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Bryan Rust beats Silovs cleanly off the rush, 5-1 PIT.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Canucks?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Canucks</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LetsGoPens?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LetsGoPens</a> 🎥: Sportsnet | NHL <a href="https://t.co/R9cgB4uu0A">pic.twitter.com/R9cgB4uu0A</a>
&mdash; CanucksArmy (@CanucksArmy) <a href="https://twitter.com/CanucksArmy/status/1861948504886903207?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 28, 2024</a></blockquote>
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Five goals on 13 shots.
Silovs made a save on a breakaway chance from Drew O&#8217;Connor after Erik Brännström got caught in a bad spot in the neutral zone. Hey, we had to mention the good stuff too.
Speaking of good stuff, the Canucks didn&#8217;t give up despite the wonky scoreline, as Fil Hronek did well to bat down an aerial pass from Pettersson before Hughes found Pius Suter, who ripped the puck past Tristan Jarry to make it 5-2. 
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Canucks score! Pius Suter steps off the bench and into an absolute ripper for his team leading 7th goal. 5-2 Penguins.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Canucks?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Canucks</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LetsGoPens?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LetsGoPens</a> 🎥: Sportsnet | NHL <a href="https://t.co/uFXgGssSlb">pic.twitter.com/uFXgGssSlb</a>
&mdash; CanucksArmy (@CanucksArmy) <a href="https://twitter.com/CanucksArmy/status/1861951446297837891?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 28, 2024</a></blockquote>
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That&#8217;s Suter&#8217;s team-leading seventh goal of the season.
The Canucks had some nice jump in the back half of the second period, and they were likely a bit unlucky to enter the third period down by three goals instead of one or two. Pittsburgh did a great job at protecting the middle of the ice, blocking shots, and playing the bend but don&#8217;t break style we saw the Canucks employ against the Bruins on Tuesday.
Quinn Hughes got the third period started off with a bang after he made a coast-to-coast solo dash 40 seconds into the frame on the heels of a strong defensive play from Elias Pettersson. 5-3 Penguins. 
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QUINN. FREAKING. HUGHES. A gorgeous solo dash cuts the Canucks deficit to two!!<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Canucks?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Canucks</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LetsGoPens?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LetsGoPens</a> 🎥: Sportsnet | NHL <a href="https://t.co/D6hzPy2HlU">pic.twitter.com/D6hzPy2HlU</a>
&mdash; CanucksArmy (@CanucksArmy) <a href="https://twitter.com/CanucksArmy/status/1861959096817344670?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 28, 2024</a></blockquote>
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Shortly after, Nils Höglander drew a hooking penalty to give the Canucks their first power play of the game.
The Canucks struggled to get set up on this one, and the best chance actually came from the Penguins when Blake Lizotte nearly scored his second goal of the game after a bouncing puck got past Pettersson at the point. Silovs got enough of it to keep it out, keeping the Canucks in this one.
Silovs continued to make some more nice saves in the third, and allowed the Canucks to pull within one after Elias Pettersson won the offensive zone draw before finding the rebound on a Quinn Hughes point shot to make it 5-4 with 1:46 on the clock.
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CANUCKS SCORE!! Elias Pettersson knocks in a loose puck and with just under two minutes to go, this game isn&#39;t over!! 5-4 Pens<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Canucks?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Canucks</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LetsGoPens?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LetsGoPens</a> 🎥: Sportsnet | NHL <a href="https://t.co/N0jtHMxASB">pic.twitter.com/N0jtHMxASB</a>
&mdash; CanucksArmy (@CanucksArmy) <a href="https://twitter.com/CanucksArmy/status/1861967706523869248?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 28, 2024</a></blockquote>
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The Canucks&#8217; comeback attempt ended there though, as they couldn&#8217;t complete the comeback after making it very interesting. 5-4 final.
Some takeaways from tonight:
-Thatcher Demko can&#8217;t come back soon enough. This was likely (and hopefully) Arturs Silovs&#8217; last NHL start for a while, with <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/vancouver-canucks-allvin-thatcher-demko-close-being-game-time-decision">Demko being close to a game time decision as of Monday</a>. And no, the Canucks shouldn&#8217;t be (and aren&#8217;t) rushing Demko back. 
-Max Sasson with another point tonight. Not a bad start to your NHL career! I liked his game tonight, and thought he showed some strong forechecking ability. 
-Erik Brännström seems to be struggling with top four deployment so far. I wonder what he looks like with a better partner or a longer run against tougher competition. The Canucks likely can&#8217;t give him the former, but they can certainly give him the latter, because that also means we don&#8217;t have to see Soucy-Myers together. 
-Nikita Tolopilo is starting to find his stride at the AHL level, and <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/farmies-tolopilo-stops-34-35-shots-give-abby-canucks-fourth-straight-win">stopped 34 of 35 shots against Bakersfield</a> on Tuesday night. As the <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/why-should-higher-arturs-silovs-canucksarmy-prospect-rankings-14">OG Silovs truther</a>, it pains me to say it, but I&#8217;ve started to wonder if Tolopilo can pass Silovs on the depth chart this season. Maybe I&#8217;m being too hard on Silovs given how bad the team in front of him was tonight. 
-It likely doesn&#8217;t matter in the end, but my goodness that hooking call against Conor Garland was one of the weakest calls you&#8217;ll ever see. 
-Nice little bounce-back game for the DeBrusk-Pettersson-Sherwood trio, who were game planned for and effectively <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/instant-reaction-kevin-lankinen-blanks-bruins-2-0-vancouver-canucks-win">shut down in Boston on Tuesday night</a>. They were much better tonight.
What&#8217;s your instant reaction to tonight&#8217;s game? Let us know in the comments section below!
And be sure to tune into Rink Wide LIVE with Jeff Paterson and Irfaan Gaffar over on YouTube! Watch below:
<div class="jetpack-video-wrapper"><iframe loading="lazy" title="RINK WIDE POST-GAME: Vancouver Canucks at Pittsburgh Penguins | Game 21 - Nov. 27, 2024" width="1333" height="1000" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/nYvSD1UI7Qc?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
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Welcome back to Instant Reaction, the series here at CanucksArmy where we give you our instant reaction to tonight’s Vancouver Canucks game and ask our readers to do the same in the comments section below!

After a stellar performance from Kevin Lankinen in what was a bit of a lock-it-down snoozefest on Tuesday night, tonight's first goal came much sooner than it did last night. Arturs Silovs overcommitted on a point shot and couldn't stop Blake Lizotte's follow up chance, which made it 1-0 Penguins on Pittsburgh's first shot of the game.

https://twitter.com/CanucksArmy/status/1861934522646024209

It's also worth mentioning this play happened because Filip Hronek made a dreadful cross-ice pass to Quinn Hughes that allowed Pittsburgh to take possession. Not the start they were looking for, to say the least!

After a strong first shift from the fourth line, Max Sasson and Nils Höglander got in on the forecheck, and Aatu Räty scored his second goal of the season after his wingers caused a turnover that ended up right on his tape. 1-1. 

https://twitter.com/CanucksArmy/status/1861936923625009594

The Canucks gave up the game's next goal after becoming a little too stationary in the defensive end. Rickard Rakell tipped home a Bryan Rust pass past Silovs to make it 2-1 Penguins. Soucy and Juulsen was a trip.

https://twitter.com/CanucksArmy/status/1861939092692578620

Looking for a spark, Tocchet sent out his new energy line of Höglander-Räty-Sasson, but Räty got his stick up in the neutral zone and was called for high sticking. It also could have been cross-checking, but his stick was certainly high, so the call felt appropriate.

On what was their second power play opportunity of the game, Kevin Hayes buried a loose puck in Silovs' goal crease to quickly make it 3-1 Penguins.

https://twitter.com/CanucksArmy/status/1861940476703846688

The Penguins kept coming, as Sidney Crosby set up Rust for a cross-ice tap in to make it 4-1 Penguins.

https://twitter.com/CanucksArmy/status/1861941226142073070

Here's my takeaway from each of these goals:

Hronek and Silovs are to blame for the first goal. Carson Soucy is completely lost on the second one. Canucks leave the middle of the ice (or the GOTI, as we call it here) wide open on the third and fourth goals.

And yes, four goals on nine shots just isn't good enough. Don't give me the "those are grade-A chances!" excuse either. You're allowed to stop those ones too, and at the NHL level, plenty of goalies do. With Demko's return on the horizon, this was likely the last we see of Arturs Silovs for a while.

Now let's get to the second period...

Bryan Rust let go of a snap shot off the rush that beat Silovs cleanly on the glove side, as this one went to 5-1 Penguins. 

https://twitter.com/CanucksArmy/status/1861948504886903207

Five goals on 13 shots.

Silovs made a save on a breakaway chance from Drew O'Connor after Erik Brännström got caught in a bad spot in the neutral zone. Hey, we had to mention the good stuff too.

Speaking of good stuff, the Canucks didn't give up despite the wonky scoreline, as Fil Hronek did well to bat down an aerial pass from Pettersson before Hughes found Pius Suter, who ripped the puck past Tristan Jarry to make it 5-2. 

https://twitter.com/CanucksArmy/status/1861951446297837891

That's Suter's team-leading seventh goal of the season.

The Canucks had some nice jump in the back half of the second period, and they were likely a bit unlucky to enter the third period down by three goals instead of one or two. Pittsburgh did a great job at protecting the middle of the ice, blocking shots, and playing the bend but don't break style we saw the Canucks employ against the Bruins on Tuesday.

Quinn Hughes got the third period started off with a bang after he made a coast-to-coast solo dash 40 seconds into the frame on the heels of a strong defensive play from Elias Pettersson. 5-3 Penguins. 

https://twitter.com/CanucksArmy/status/1861959096817344670

Shortly after, Nils Höglander drew a hooking penalty to give the Canucks their first power play of the game.

The Canucks struggled to get set up on this one, and the best chance actually came from the Penguins when Blake Lizotte nearly scored his second goal of the game after a bouncing puck got past Pettersson at the point. Silovs got enough of it to keep it out, keeping the Canucks in this one.

Silovs continued to make some more nice saves in the third, and allowed the Canucks to pull within one after Elias Pettersson won the offensive zone draw before finding the rebound on a Quinn Hughes point shot to make it 5-4 with 1:46 on the clock.

https://twitter.com/CanucksArmy/status/1861967706523869248

The Canucks' comeback attempt ended there though, as they couldn't complete the comeback after making it very interesting. 5-4 final.

Some takeaways from tonight:

-Thatcher Demko can't come back soon enough. This was likely (and hopefully) Arturs Silovs' last NHL start for a while, with <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/vancouver-canucks-allvin-thatcher-demko-close-being-game-time-decision">Demko being close to a game time decision as of Monday</a>. And no, the Canucks shouldn't be (and aren't) rushing Demko back.
-Max Sasson with another point tonight. Not a bad start to your NHL career! I liked his game tonight, and thought he showed some strong forechecking ability.
-Erik Brännström seems to be struggling with top four deployment so far. I wonder what he looks like with a better partner or a longer run against tougher competition. The Canucks likely can't give him the former, but they can certainly give him the latter, because that also means we don't have to see Soucy-Myers together.
-Nikita Tolopilo is starting to find his stride at the AHL level, and <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/farmies-tolopilo-stops-34-35-shots-give-abby-canucks-fourth-straight-win">stopped 34 of 35 shots against Bakersfield</a> on Tuesday night. As the <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/why-should-higher-arturs-silovs-canucksarmy-prospect-rankings-14">OG Silovs truther</a>, it pains me to say it, but I've started to wonder if Tolopilo can pass Silovs on the depth chart this season. Maybe I'm being too hard on Silovs given how bad the team in front of him was tonight.
-It likely doesn't matter in the end, but my goodness that hooking call against Conor Garland was one of the weakest calls you'll ever see.
-Nice little bounce-back game for the DeBrusk-Pettersson-Sherwood trio, who were game planned for and effectively <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/instant-reaction-kevin-lankinen-blanks-bruins-2-0-vancouver-canucks-win">shut down in Boston on Tuesday night</a>. They were much better tonight.

What's your instant reaction to tonight's game? Let us know in the comments section below!

And be sure to tune into Rink Wide LIVE with Jeff Paterson and Irfaan Gaffar over on YouTube! Watch below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nYvSD1UI7Qc

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‘I felt better as the game went along’: Canucks’ Demko reflects on his return to the lineup

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