The Vancouver Canucks gave a Christmas present to the fanbase on Monday night in the form of a 4-3 win over the San Jose Sharks.
Oh, the win wasn’t the gift. The gift was we don’t have to talk about the Elias Pettersson and JT Miller dynamic anytime soon.
Yes, fresh off of both players addressing the media about the alleged rift, it allowed everyone to collectively shrug and go, “Okay, sounds good,” and move on with life, which is what tends to happen when you go on record and give your official statement about stupid sports drama.
We only have to talk about the Miller and Pettersson dynamic affecting the room if JT hits Elias with a chair during a practice and demands a falls count anywhere match at the Royal Rumble. Which, last I heard, JT was setting up a storyline with Hughes to carry him to Wrestlemania, so I think we’re safe for a while.
Barring that, we can get back to our regularly scheduled programming, which is, of course, trying to figure out how to fit in a solid Metal Gear Solid reference into the recap:
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Will my editor know that’s the reference? We shall see.
Editor here: I got it.
The point is, the Canucks not only defeated the San Jose Sharks, they also crushed Macklin Celebrini’s dream of scoring a goal on Rogers Arena ice some serious emotional baggage in one of the spiciest games of the season. And while the third period ended up as all Rick Tocchet games tend to end up, with that exciting and salacious blend of dumping the puck 40 times with a couple of icings thrown in for good measure, the first two periods were as loud as I have heard this building in a long time.
Which makes sense, considering the Canucks played with the proud beer league tradition of bringing your off-ice anger into the rink. There was a sense of catharsis in the air as the Canucks seemed happy to be physically beating an opponent rather than having to ask questions about the locker room dynamic.
Two fights, big hits, and a pair of Elias Pettersson goals, and the roof was about ready to blow off the arena. Which it didn’t, because of, you know, the third period of a million dumps. Which sounds like a Roberto Luongo biography.
Still, the vibe around the arena felt different. The tension in the air felt like it had been released. For weeks it felt like the entire team was tip-toeing around, worried that they might be asked to talk about Pettersson and Miller. It just felt like everyone was on edge, culminating in the team finally discussing the elephant in the room.
And while the Canucks tend to be pouty babies at the best of times after a loss, and tend to be quite chipper after wins, this one felt a bit different. Quinn Hughes, Tyler Myers and Kiefer Sherwood all spoke at length after the game, giving in-depth answers. People were smiling and laughing with each other. At one point, I swear I saw a twinkle in an eye. It just felt like the anxiety of having to talk about “the situation” had done more damage than trying to avoid it.
I wish I could explain how it felt in the building after that Ottawa loss, but it felt like you were in trouble with your parents and you didn’t know why.
Monday night? It was just business as usual, which was nice to settle back into.
So now we can just get back to talking hockey — or at least until Elliotte Friedman gets bored and proposes a JT Miller trade after having one too many nogs.
But until then, let’s see some gifs, shall we?
Best Prime Time
This game was not shown on Sportsnet, which had the benefit of not being told you were regionally restricted from viewing the game despite living three blocks from the arena but also had the drawback of no John Shorthouse.
Still, it’s always good to see how other companies try their hand at presenting hockey because a monopoly is how you end up with the death of creativity and/or bemoaning the fact you couldn’t purchase St. Charles Place.
We also got to see what an unproductive first period power play looks like on Amazon:
It looks quite similar to an unsuccessful power play on Sportsnet, but at least with Amazon you can hope that the goal delivery was merely delayed.
The good news for Vancouver is they ran a power play in which JT Miller did not simply walk into Mordor and watch the other team score shorthanded, so by all accounts at least this wasn’t a failure.
Best low and slow
Like any brisket worth eating, sometimes you have to take your time with it. So was it a surprise the Canucks took a while to generate shots on net? Not really; that’s sort of their thing. It doesn’t even faze me at this point when they struggle to hit five shots, I just assume this is what my life has always been like. This is called compartmentalization, and it’s very useful for ignoring sorrow and setting yourself up for a future battle with “being emotionally available,” as my therapist tries to tell me.
Going slow has its disadvantages, of course, mostly in the fact that other teams seem to score first in every game against Vancouver, and this night was no different.
It started off with Carson Soucy getting a penalty for holding as he raced back to break up a two-on-one:
Now normally the Canucks penalty kill – which has been very solid on the season – will go out there and try not to get scored on. Pretty simple strategy, but it works.
Unless, of course, you’re Tyler Myers aka The Chaos Giraffe, and you have decided you want to murder the soul of William Eklund:
When asked about it after the game, Myers said he didn’t hunt out that hit, but when he saw it presented in front of him, he took it.
Now, I was in the room when he talked about said hit, and there was a devilish glint in his eyes and a, dare I say, John McClane swagger in his delivery. A look that said, “I’m just here for a Christmas party, but if you break into the office and hold people hostage, I gots to do what I gots to do.”
I feel like once a season, Myers lays someone out just to remind people that should he want to, he could kill any one of us. Duncan Keith experienced it firsthand, and now so has William Eklund.
Speaking of an emotional release, for a fan base that can live and die with this team, it felt like they LOVED that hit. All the angst, all the drama, it felt like for one collective moment, people got to forget about the outside world and remembered what makes hockey so good: Tyler Myers trying to end people.
Best harsh account of things
With the Canucks down two men thanks to a Derek Forbort tripping penalty, William Eklund gained a measure of revenge when he went straight to flavour town on this blast of a shot:
That’s about as perfect of a shot as you’ll see in the NHL, so it’s hard to chastise Thatcher Demko for not stopping that puck. I mean, I can try if you want, but it doesn’t feel holiday-appropriate.
Perfect shot or not, it still represented another game in which the Canucks let their opponent score the first goal, proving my theory that Fin isn’t doing his job well enough. What good is a mascot if he can’t get the other team off their game? How has Fin not been charged with lighting the other team’s locker room on fire yet? Sometimes I just wonder if he even cares about this team at all.
Best Brock rhymes with clock
After being unsure if he would be able to play the game due to a minor injury, Quinn Hughes played almost 10 minutes in the first period and ended the night, leading the team with 25 minutes of ice time.
And during that time, wouldn’t you know it, he generated two assists, including this pass to Brock Boeser for the Canucks first goal:
We’re at the point where Quinn Hughes is slowly turning into the Randy Marsh meme, as I don’t think he ever hears no bell. It’s incredible that he came so close to not even playing, but once again, ends up being the best player from either team.
And while Brock didn’t have to do much on this goal, it’s his instincts of knowing where to be on the ice that led to half his goals in the first place. If I had been on the ice, I would have still been at the blue line, and there is a high chance I would have wet myself.
Brock? He just knows where to go, so he dishes a pass off to Quinn and then charges the net to give a target to fling the puck at. End result? Canucks tie the game up at one goal a piece.
Best fight night
Due to hockey’s code of honour, you must fight after a big clean hit. It’s why Data and Worf once tore it up on the holodeck after the Klingon took out Riker from behind. Rules are rules after all.
And in this case, it was Barclay Goodrow who had the honour of dancing with Tyler Myers, and I call it dancing because the ridiculous reach advantage of the Chaos Giraffe ensured Barclay didn’t land a punch:
After the game, Myers said Goodrow told him the hit on Eklund was clean, but he had to do what he had to do. It all felt very respectful, besides, you know, the trying to punch each other part. He also acknowledged that having a reach advantage is a nice thing to utilize, and you know what? Tyler Myers is one of the best media scrum guys on the team.
I’ve said it before, but this is one of their best talkers. If you trot out Tyler Myers two weeks ago and let him address the locker room dynamics, he shuts it down in one answer. Nothing rattles this guy. I’ve spoken to him after massive losses, some of which he played a key part in, and the dude will chat to you about it as if you’re asking him his thoughts on what kind of drill to buy.
He has the perfect blend of giving you enough info, but also making sure he doesn’t incite any political drama. Like, a lot of players would never talk about Goodrow telling him the hit was clean, but with Myers, he’s refreshingly honest about that sort of stuff. He gives you some insight and takes you inside the game a bit. It’s interesting, and it’s entertaining.
He’s also really good at instilling confidence in his speeches with his answers. Take, for example, this response when asked if the holiday break would be a good chance for the team to refocus:
“I don’t think we have much to refocus from, you know? I think guys…have done a great job with some of the adversity we’ve faced. Some challenges. Guys going down, guys in and out of the lineup. Guys have handled challenges well. It’s the same process each and every day. We come into the rink, we look at things we can get better at within our system, better at within our compete, and move onto the next game. It’s the same process.”
Some players would jump at the chance to say, “Yeah, for sure, we can refocus and come back stronger,” but Myers wants you to know they don’t need to refocus; everything is aces, nothing out of the ordinary here.
And that’s sort of his thing. He’s never too down or too up after any kind of result. In a sports city known for panicking, his ability to handle the ups and downs of this market is something not enough people give him credit for.
If I’m running the team, I am trotting out Myers to handle media scrums a lot more than the other players; that’s all I’m saying.
Best stock rising
We’ve spoken about it a lot recently, and it continues to be true: Vincent Desharnais has quietly played some really solid hockey.
Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t like, “Hey, maybe he can be a top four d-man,” sort of talk; it’s purely a “This guy is carving out a role on the bottom pairing,” which is a marked improvement from the rumours of the Canucks may be trying to cut bait with him.
So, while we wait to see how his future in Vancouver plays out, it should be noted that he’s significantly calmed his game. He rarely chases the play, instead letting the game come to him.
And hey, if he needs to make a sprawling defensive play after Phil Di Giuseppe gets absolutely trucked and JT Miller peaces out on defending Celebrini, so be it:
Even his diving sprawl is fully in control. He doesn’t go all out and slide into the boards; he keeps it contained to the GOTI and even does an extra tap of the puck to keep it out of danger.
I still think a pairing of Forbort and Desharnais is a dance with the devil, and the Canucks need to bring in more depth. But if a bear were chasing both Derek and Vinnie, I feel like Vinnie is out-pacing Derek at the moment in terms of which guy I’d rather see in the lineup, which, again, isn’t something I would have said a month ago.
Give Desharnais his flowers, damn it.
Best denial of entry
The Sharks continued to press for a goal in the first period, and were it not for a beautiful combination of Demko and DeBrusk, they might have gotten it:
Not a great rebound from Demko, but kudos to Jake for getting back defensively to tie up some sticks and to Thatcher for utilizing some slick Raygun dance moves at the side of the net.
Best a moment like this
The Canucks were THIS close to ending the feud forever:
The no-look spin pass from Elias back out front to JT Miller ended with a missed shot, but that still felt better than watching one of them playing on power play unit two while Rick Tocchet assures you the players know what’s up.
“Mom, why is Dad sleeping on the couch tonight?”
“Your father knows what’s up.”
We just don’t want divorce proceedings imminent energy in our hockey, you know? That’s all we ask.
Best underlying issues
The Canucks power play had some really strong puck possession shifts, but as Mark points out, it didn’t result in a lot of shots.
So, while it’s nice to see the team rotate the puck, win board battles, and keep the play in the offensive zone, it’s also a weird vibe to see a power play essentially running a fourth-line strategy of eating up the clock with hard work.
Their best chance of the power play to start the second period was from the ol’ Sedin dump-in-play, where JT Miller got a good look at Yaroslav Askarov:
We just don’t see a ton of middle-of-the-ice efficiency from the team with the extra man. It feels like they still struggle to get into the GOTI, which means we end up talking wistfully of Bumpin’ Bo Horvat and nothing against Bo, but I can’t have him be the symbol for power play efficiency.
Best sports but make it arts
The second period was one of the more entertaining periods of the season, if only for the weird goaltender interactions the Canucks kept having with Askarov.
The best one? Brock Boeser being draped over the Sharks goalie, pinned down by Timothy Liljegren, holding up his hand to signal that his current predicament was not by choice:
The main takeaway from this clip should be the Canucks willingness to crash the net was on full display throughout the game, which was a good indicator that they were locked in and focused. It was one of the rare nights when it felt like everyone was doing that metaphor about pulling the rope in the same direction.
Best he can dance all day
The physicality continued as Ty Dellandrea laid a questionable hit on Teddy Blueger, which the NHL called interference, but which Danton called “let’s get down to business” time:
Danton was dinged with an instigator penalty and a 10-minute misconduct, as he’s from Langley, and you can never be too careful. The truth of the matter is, however, that it was his first career NHL fight. As Sherwood described it post-game, it looked like he came in throwing punches like he was in the UFC, which means I am now legally entitled to reference Chuck Lidell.
Misconduct or not, the crowd was as amped as I have heard them this season, even more so when the ref handed out the misconduct. You had the perfect formula for getting a Canucks crowd jacked, watching a guy throw bombs looking for a knockout while also feeling like the NHL is out to get them.
Best Langley cred
Best emotional availability
That parking lot fight energy continued as Teddy KGB returned to the ice and immediately went about setting up shop in the blue paint, leading to Askarov sitting on Blueger’s leg behind the net, leading to the Sharks taking a penalty:
Basically, we were fully on petty girl winter mode and honestly, I can’t get enough of it.
Like Teddy is straight up going, “Tee hee, clumsy me, I didn’t meant to bump into Askarov,” and the Sharks get so mad they yank his helmet off.
This is what good hockey looks like.
Best forget the powerplay
You know who doesn’t need first-unit power play time? Kiefer Sherwood:
Teddy KGB’s revenge tour continues as his pass finds Sherwood in flight, who then puts on an absolute snipe show on Askarov. I have to assume Nashville sees these highlights, opens up a bottle of wine and just stares out the window for a while.
Now, did Askarov play this shot perfectly? No, not at all. He gives up a lot of room on the blocker side for reasons only Woodley can tell me. I feel like this is very much veering into “What would Dan Cloutier do” territory.
But that’s also a hell of a shot from Kiefer; it’s not like that was an easy goal for him. Coming through the zone with speed like that and unleashing that shot, you know what? He deserves the Naslund comparison on that goal.
The guy I feel bad for is Henry Thrun, as he plays this one really well. He tracks Sherwood and stays with him through the zone. But then, all of a sudden, Kiefer is juicing his EA Sports ratings and cranks out a 95 shot accuracy, and now the puck is in the back of the net.
Best healing the room
Hey, you know what makes people shut up about locker room dynamics? Scoring goals:
The crowd lost their absolute sh*t after this goal went in, which again, is what happens when something is fueled by angst and anxiety and the thought that you might never see it again. This is also the reason make-up sex is one of life’s greatest experiences because all that negative energy all of the sudden turns into this big source of positivity.
And you can tell from Pettersson’s reaction that he was jacked, as well. His struggles to score since JT Miller came back are well-documented, as has the talk around his shot losing some speed. So putting one on the board has a nice little bit of eff you energy behind it.
All of that being said, please watch the shark, Corolla Garland, who sets this play in motion. Watch him slink back into the defensive zone and put himself in position to pounce on that puck, immediately turning the play back the other way. Then he drives the net so he can have a shot at the rebound from Jake DeBrusk’s shot (which was placed low for that very reason), and then sets a screen so good the Sharks demanded the NHL investigate it for interference.
To summarize, Garland creates a takeaway, screens the goalie for Elias, and then draws a penalty because the Sharks video guy is overly confident in his abilities.
Best vintage Elias
Elias’ second goal of the game came on a 5-on-3, but it should be noted that JT Miller is one of the main reasons they were in that position due to him driving hard to the net:
As with anything good Vancouver-related, Quinn Hughes had a hand in it with a brilliant pass, but JT’s efforts to match Pettersson’s offensive output so he can prove he’s better try and score gave the Canucks the two-man advantage.
He then followed this up by getting the primary assist on EP40’s second goal:
Sure, the pass didn’t actually get to Elias, but damn it, not now, let us enjoy this moment.
The fact of the matter is we haven’t seen that kind of shot from Elias in a long long time. He basically walks the puck in off the boards and picks his spot in the universal language of bofa.
There is a slight pause where part of me worried he was thinking pass, but nope. He goes top shelf where Mom keeps her special sewing box you’re never supposed to open.
Best feeling the vibes
Best support bros
I appreciate the energy Kiefer brings to this goal. He’s so excited for Elias that he has to run and hug Nils Höglander. This is the kind of guy who you bring to a bachelor party because you know he will laugh at you being a drunk idiot, but he’ll also make sure you’re hydrated and you get back to your room safe.
Also, shout out to the camera-man for looking around for a target of sadness and zooming in on Mario Ferraro.
Best not all dreams come true
Despite growing up a Canucks fan, Macklin’s dream of scoring a goal at Rogers Arena ended in irony. Wait, I meant iron:
That being said, enjoy this moment now, because this kid is incredibly skilled and incredibly fast and incredibly shifty.
I don’t look forward to the near future, in which he grins and talks post-game about how getting a hat trick in Vancouver was a highlight moment for him.
Best new feud
It was clearly a high stick, but sadly it was JT Miller who did the damage:
Is there no one safe from the rampage of JT Miller?
Best sit back and wait
With the excitement of the second period over, the Canucks then sat back and essentially waited to see if the Sharks would tie the game up. That’s the only way to explain their total lack of pushback during the entirety of the third period. Never have I felt like I was watching Travis Green hockey more than I did during this period.
And while I know at its core that Tocchet GOTI hockey is a more methodical, defensive approach to the game, even he talked about the team having to adjust how it handles teams that are pressing for goals:
“We still gotta get a hold of this. When a team’s making a push, we gotta still be making plays. You can’t be happy just getting it and throwing it away. We’re going to have to change some of our practice habits…maybe have drills that actually putting pressure on a guy to make a play…teams are going to make presses and you’re going to have to make a play under pressure instead of just throwing it away.”
So, while he recognizes they need to adapt a better style, until they do, it’s essentially a combination of watching Quinn Hughes skate with the puck combined with the rest of the time fighting to see who can dump the puck in the fastest.
It makes more tedious and boring hockey, and while it can still close out games, the Sharks managed to get two goals while the Canucks tried to shut down the game.
The first goal wasn’t even a dangerous shot; it was just Cody Ceci taking a clapper from the faceoff circle:
The problem is that it tipped off Noah Juulsen’s stick, which hey, that’s some bad luck. You can easily write that off to the hockey gods having a laugh at your expense.
The problem is the Sharks ended the third period with 14 shots to the Canucks four, and as we know in hockey, you can generate your own luck at times simply with shot volume.
The Sharks would then get their third goal of the game, but by then there wasn’t enough time left on the clock to attempt to tie the game up:
This goal is a consequence of the Sharks having the extra man, but it’s also generated from shot volume and simply finding a way to get pucks on Demko.
I understand parking the bus to grind out a lead can work; it just feels like the Canucks parked the bus for the entire third period instead of the last few minutes.
End of the day, the Canucks won this game and had that emotional release they so dearly needed, but they still need to figure out how to generate offensive chances consistently.
Best way to ruin your holidays
Elias getting injured after finding his mojo would be very Canuck like luck.
Best happy holidays
And with that, we’ve reached the holiday season. Which sounds long, but I’ll see you in a few days. The grind continues!
Until then, have a happy holidays and enjoy your time off!
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