The Vancouver Canucks (21-17-10) look to push their win streak to three games when they face the Nashville Predators (18-23-7) at Bridgestone Arena.
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The Canucks won all three of their games in Music City in last spring’s opening-round playoff matchup against the Preds.
<h1>What we know</h1>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
Optional for <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/canucks?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#canucks</a>. Demko starts vs Preds. Joshua returns to lineup.
&mdash; Dan Murphy (@sportsnetmurph) <a href="https://twitter.com/sportsnetmurph/status/1884654741889912990?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 29, 2025</a></blockquote>
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For the first time since a January 3rd game against the Predators, Dakota Joshua returns to the Canucks line-up. He has missed 11 games with a lower-body injury. It’s possible Noah Juulsen draws in as well. Due to an undisclosed injury, he has not played since January 14th in Winnipeg. Thatcher Demko gets the start in goal. Demko has won just one of his last seven starts as he continues to search for his top form.
Rick Tocchet did not reveal the rest of his line-up for tonight’s game other than Max Sasson will come out to make room for Joshua. The Canucks will need to activate both Joshua and Juulsen from IR and make corresponding roster moves to get them in the line-up. The club called Aatu Räty up from Abbotsford yesterday, but there is no word yet on whether he&#8217;ll slide into the line-up. Räty&#8217;s last NHL game was December 10th against St. Louis. One of his two big-league goals this season was scored against the Preds.
The Canucks are coming off their first back-to-back wins in nearly two months, following up Saturday’s 2-1 victory over Washington with a 5-2 win in St. Louis on Monday. Conor Garland scored twice, Pius Suter and Tyler Myers each had a goal and an assist, and JT Miller netted the game-winner. 
Suter’s goal was the team’s second short-handed goal of the season, while Garland and Miller each scored on the power play. Quinn Hughes had a pair of helpers, giving him six goals and eight assists in his past 11 games. That is tops among all NHL defencemen over that span. While Hughes has never scored a goal against the Predators, he has 21 assists in 14 career games against them.
The team’s offensive outburst on Monday marked the first time since January 6th the Canucks had scored four goals in a game and the first time since December 6th they had scored five times. The club has not strung three wins together since sweeping a California road trip in the first week of November.
Tonight is the Canucks’ 50th game of the season. They start the night a point back of Calgary in the chase for the second Wild Card spot in the Western Conference. Last season, the Canucks were 34-11-5 through 50 games.
<h1>The opponent</h1>
While the Predators have struggled mightily this season, they have shown signs of life since the start of January. A 5-2 loss in Anaheim in their last game on Saturday snapped a five-game win streak. Gustav Nyquist and Ryan O’Reilly had the Nashville goals and the team lost despite peppering the Ducks net with 43 shots.
Starting with a 3-0 win in Vancouver on January 3rd, the Preds are 7-3 in their last 10 contests. Filip Forsberg has been the driving force for Nashville’s recent surge with nine goals and 19 points on a 10-game point streak. He has 11 points in his last four games alone. On the season, Forsberg leads Nashville with 18 goals and 49 points.
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Nashville&#39;s morning skate lines.
Forsberg &#8211; Stamkos &#8211; Marchessault Nyquist &#8211; O&#39;Reilly &#8211; Hinostroza Novak &#8211; Svechkov &#8211; L’Heureux Smith &#8211; McCarron &#8211; Sissons
Josi &#8211; Barron Skjei &#8211; Blankenburg Wilsby &#8211; Schenn
&mdash; Nick Kieser🏒 (@KieserNick) <a href="https://twitter.com/KieserNick/status/1884642892284641516?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 29, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Part of the recent push is the result of a power play that is clicking at 33.3% in January – that is tied for third-best in the NHL this month. Steven Stamkos is the Preds&#8217; leading marksman with the man advantage, scoring nine of his 17 goals on the season on the power play.
While the club is still tied for 29th in the overall standings, the Predators have been a solid home-ice team all season, posting 12 of their 18 victories at home, where they are 6-1-1 in their last eight games.
Juuse Saros gets the start in goal tonight. Four of his 11 wins on the season are by shutout, including one against the Canucks earlier this month.
If you want to mess with the Preds, they’re fine with that. Nashville leads the NHL with 24 fighting majors this season led by Michael McCarron with seven. No other team in the league has more than 20.
The Predators have defeated the Canucks in their first two meetings this season. They posted a 5-3 win in Vancouver on November 17th and a 3-0 shutout at Rogers Arena earlier this month.
Tonight’s referees: Ghislain Hebert &amp; Mitch Dunning
Tonight’s broadcasters: John Shorthouse &amp; Dave Tomlinson
<h1>What we heard</h1>
Rick Tocchet on what he&#8217;s looking for as team shoots for third straight win: &#8220;I think a little bit of what we&#8217;ve done last couple of games. The structure has been better, guys are holding to details. Every game is going to be a tough game. You have to have that mindset. Always on the road, you want to make sure you do a really good forecheck. It really helps your game. Play without the puck and attacking the interior. It was nice to get five goals last game. We need to attack the interior and continue to funnel pucks to the net. I think that&#8217;s something we&#8217;ve preached the last few months.&#8221;
Dakota Joshua on returning to the line-up for first time in nearly four weeks: &#8220;I want to get back and get involved early. Get back to being the player I know I can be and making an impact any way possible.&#8221;
Make sure to join the Rink Wide Vancouver postgame live stream immediately following tonight’s game. Rink Wide will provide a full breakdown and comprehensive coverage of the Canucks game. When the final buzzer sounds, be sure to log onto Rink Wide and join the YouTube live chat to discuss the game with other Canucks fans. Subscribe to the Rink Wide YouTube channel and never miss an episode.
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The Vancouver Canucks (21-17-10) look to push their win streak to three games when they face the Nashville Predators (18-23-7) at Bridgestone Arena.
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The Canucks won all three of their games in Music City in last spring’s opening-round playoff matchup against the Preds.
<h1>What we know</h1>
https://twitter.com/sportsnetmurph/status/1884654741889912990

For the first time since a January 3rd game against the Predators, Dakota Joshua returns to the Canucks line-up. He has missed 11 games with a lower-body injury. It’s possible Noah Juulsen draws in as well. Due to an undisclosed injury, he has not played since January 14th in Winnipeg. Thatcher Demko gets the start in goal. Demko has won just one of his last seven starts as he continues to search for his top form.

Rick Tocchet did not reveal the rest of his line-up for tonight’s game other than Max Sasson will come out to make room for Joshua. The Canucks will need to activate both Joshua and Juulsen from IR and make corresponding roster moves to get them in the line-up. The club called Aatu Räty up from Abbotsford yesterday, but there is no word yet on whether he'll slide into the line-up. Räty's last NHL game was December 10th against St. Louis. One of his two big-league goals this season was scored against the Preds.

The Canucks are coming off their first back-to-back wins in nearly two months, following up Saturday’s 2-1 victory over Washington with a 5-2 win in St. Louis on Monday. Conor Garland scored twice, Pius Suter and Tyler Myers each had a goal and an assist, and JT Miller netted the game-winner. 

Suter’s goal was the team’s second short-handed goal of the season, while Garland and Miller each scored on the power play. Quinn Hughes had a pair of helpers, giving him six goals and eight assists in his past 11 games. That is tops among all NHL defencemen over that span. While Hughes has never scored a goal against the Predators, he has 21 assists in 14 career games against them.

The team’s offensive outburst on Monday marked the first time since January 6th the Canucks had scored four goals in a game and the first time since December 6th they had scored five times. The club has not strung three wins together since sweeping a California road trip in the first week of November.

Tonight is the Canucks’ 50th game of the season. They start the night a point back of Calgary in the chase for the second Wild Card spot in the Western Conference. Last season, the Canucks were 34-11-5 through 50 games.
<h1>The opponent</h1>
While the Predators have struggled mightily this season, they have shown signs of life since the start of January. A 5-2 loss in Anaheim in their last game on Saturday snapped a five-game win streak. Gustav Nyquist and Ryan O’Reilly had the Nashville goals and the team lost despite peppering the Ducks net with 43 shots.

Starting with a 3-0 win in Vancouver on January 3rd, the Preds are 7-3 in their last 10 contests. Filip Forsberg has been the driving force for Nashville’s recent surge with nine goals and 19 points on a 10-game point streak. He has 11 points in his last four games alone. On the season, Forsberg leads Nashville with 18 goals and 49 points.

https://twitter.com/KieserNick/status/1884642892284641516

Part of the recent push is the result of a power play that is clicking at 33.3% in January – that is tied for third-best in the NHL this month. Steven Stamkos is the Preds' leading marksman with the man advantage, scoring nine of his 17 goals on the season on the power play.

While the club is still tied for 29th in the overall standings, the Predators have been a solid home-ice team all season, posting 12 of their 18 victories at home, where they are 6-1-1 in their last eight games.

Juuse Saros gets the start in goal tonight. Four of his 11 wins on the season are by shutout, including one against the Canucks earlier this month.

If you want to mess with the Preds, they’re fine with that. Nashville leads the NHL with 24 fighting majors this season led by Michael McCarron with seven. No other team in the league has more than 20.

The Predators have defeated the Canucks in their first two meetings this season. They posted a 5-3 win in Vancouver on November 17th and a 3-0 shutout at Rogers Arena earlier this month.

Tonight’s referees: Ghislain Hebert &amp; Mitch Dunning

Tonight’s broadcasters: John Shorthouse &amp; Dave Tomlinson
<h1>What we heard</h1>
Rick Tocchet on what he's looking for as team shoots for third straight win: "I think a little bit of what we've done last couple of games. The structure has been better, guys are holding to details. Every game is going to be a tough game. You have to have that mindset. Always on the road, you want to make sure you do a really good forecheck. It really helps your game. Play without the puck and attacking the interior. It was nice to get five goals last game. We need to attack the interior and continue to funnel pucks to the net. I think that's something we've preached the last few months."

Dakota Joshua on returning to the line-up for first time in nearly four weeks: "I want to get back and get involved early. Get back to being the player I know I can be and making an impact any way possible."

Make sure to join the Rink Wide Vancouver postgame live stream immediately following tonight’s game. Rink Wide will provide a full breakdown and comprehensive coverage of the Canucks game. When the final buzzer sounds, be sure to log onto Rink Wide and join the YouTube live chat to discuss the game with other Canucks fans. Subscribe to the Rink Wide YouTube channel and never miss an episode.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u0A3LMbqmJU

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Scenes from morning skate: Dak is back, Demko starts for Canucks vs. Predators

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