Despite the return of Quinn Hughes and a four-point night from JT Miller, the Vancouver Canucks continued to do what they do best: Honour Travis Green by blowing leads and losing games.
I’m not sure why 2024/25 was the year the Canucks decided to embark on a season-long tribute to the former Coach in the form of low offensive hockey coupled with sitting back and somehow not defending very well at the same time. Yet that’s where we find ourselves after yet another game that featured a blown lead and yet another game featuring an overtime loss.
And look, I want to blame this one on JT Miller vs Elias Pettersson as much as the next guy. WWE has moved to Netflix, so what better time than now to point fingers and accuse players of feuding with each other in the hopes of landing a spot at Wrestlemania?
Alas, the real reason for the loss isn’t nearly as interesting: The Canucks roster, to borrow a popular phrase from Rich Tocchet, just doesn’t have the juice.
Defensively there are just too many breakdowns, and offensively, well, I don’t doubt for a second that generating shots and consistent offense is hard in the NHL, it’s just Vancouver makes it look REALLY hard. It’s the same as asking me, “Can I wash the dishes?” Yes, of course I can, but I am going to make sure you know how difficult I found this task, one fork at a time.
Still, when a team goes up 3-1 on the backs of three goals on eight shots, you would hope they could at least ride that vintage 2023/24 shooting percentage all the way to the finish line.
Instead, the Canucks watched as Lane Hutson put on a clinic, offering up the type of game you normally reserved for Quinn Hughes. The game against Montreal was very much a Nelson-Muntz-staring-in-the-mirror moment for a Canucks fan base, getting to experience what it feels like when an agile defenseman terrorizes your team for an entire game.
“Can’t they just stop him??” you plead, already knowing the answer in your heart. No, no they cannot. One does not simply walk into Mordor.
Maybe in another world, a third period post from the Chaos Giraffe goes in, and we live in a universe in which Vancouver coasted to victory, but that’s just how chaos works. You can’t control it; you merely hope to survive it. Maybe getting a solitary point out of this game is the official start of “moral victory season,” the only seasonal shift bleaker than Michaels going from Christmas decorations to Valentine’s Day.
Either way, whatever you want to blame for the Canucks struggles seems like the solution to it is interlocked with impending changes.
Can the Canucks ride this out, find the answers within the room, and turn things around? Of course they can. How can you not read the words “meet pressure with meet pressure” and feel invigorated and ready to take on the world? Or at the very least wonder if it would have been a slightly tweaked and turned into a good slogan for the Big Mac.
It just feels like that won’t be the path taken with this team. The expectations are too high for a team owned by a man who probably already counted on first round playoff revenue to buy him another yacht that goes inside his yacht, chasing the Pimp My Ride dream I assume all rich men grasp onto.
Which means, yeah, it kind of feels like things are in a holding pattern right now. Whether that gets resolved with roster changes or the team starts putting up dubs, it just feels like the team is adrift in a sea of Granlunds, waiting for answers that might never come.
And if that doesn’t fire you up to read about this game, then nothing else will.
Best everything is fine, nothing to see here
I choose to believe he has installed a web-slinger to become Spiderman on ice.
I think being a Canucks fan teaches you to assume the worst, so you see how Tanner Pearson’s hand played out, and you see this, and you just assume the sporting gods just want you to suffer, so this will end poorly.
That being said, there is nothing to indicate anything is out of place. I just think this is Quinn gutting through an injury by wearing something to protect his fingers while also allowing his wrist some mobility.
Was it Quinn’s best game of the season? Not even remotely. At one point, he was wearing two different skates because his original one broke down, so he was also stumbling around the ice at times as well. This did not feel like a fun game for him to have to play.
That being said, he was still the best Canucks defenceman not named Tyler Myers, as even a one-armed Quinn Hughes is the best option on the back end, even if he ends up framing Richard Kimble for murder. Rick Tocchet clearly felt so, as Quinn led the entire team in ice time at 26 minutes, out-pacing even Lane Hutson’s 25 minutes.
Which leads me back to the web-slinger theory because that still hasn’t been fully discounted yet.
That’s all I’m saying.
Best are you ready for this?
Old friend Jonathan Lekkerimäki made his return to Vancouver’s lineup, and instead of catching him up on how the season has gone, the Canucks let him experience it in one quick summary:
Kaiden Guhle absolutely trucked Lekkerimäki into next week after Jonthan took his time merging onto the Stanley Park causeway. By the time he looked up, the arrow had gone red, and Guhle just plowed right into him. It was a physical tone Montreal set for the entire first period, and even though Vancouver eventually outhit the Habs 39 to 23 by game’s end (10 of which were, of course, from Kiefer Sherwood), it felt like Montreal had the more impactful big hits.
Still, credit to Vancouver for not backing down. They did at least step up and try to match the playoff-style hitting put on display by Montreal on Monday night.
And if the hitting wasn’t enough from Montreal, they also got on the board quickly into the first period:
Amazon Prime chose the “Grandpa zooming in so he can see the grandkids kick the soccer ball” lens, so the replay doesn’t showcase the slick shot all too well, but Cole Caulfield’s goal was a good one.
Somehow, Natural Stat Trick had it at 0 high danger chances from either team in the first period, which continues a year-long level of distrust on my end of their counting system, but scoring chance-wise, the end tally of 23 for Montreal and 13 for Vancouver feels like it tells the story of this game. Vancouver played okay, but Montreal was better, so maybe this was a moral victory overtime point after all.
If anything, Cole Caulfield, Lane Hutson, and Nick Suzuki were worth the price of admission, as it felt like something was happening anytime either one of them was on the ice.
And like I said, full credit to Montreal because they played very hard on Monday night. Even Corolla Garland, the king of squeaking by along the boards and sneaking into tight spaces, was offered no quarter, and none was given:
Normally, he can duck that hit, but here, his shift ends quite efficiently. Maybe even a little mean-spirited, as well, but in a good hockey way.
Jake DeBrusk was the next person to feel the heat as Jayden Struble stapled Jake to the boards, giving him the full Balrog experience:
Setting the tone is what I believe the kids are calling it these days. Montreal had the juice in the first period if Rick Tocchet were to describe it, “eff them kids” is how internet Michael Jordan might frame it.
Whichever one you go with, Montreal started the game off strong, and the crowd was very much into it. One of the best atmospheres in an arena on the season for a Canucks game, if we’re being honest.
Best JT has a particular set of skills
Despite having the body language of Eeyore failing his finals and missing out on getting his law degree, JT Miller brought it offensively in this game. And whatever you think of him, no matter what glaring defensive issues arise or lack of effort on line changes show up, even if he’s out here yelling at poor Collin Delia for not leaving the net quick enough, at the end of the day, nobody can deny that JT Miller is one of the best offensive players in Vancouver Canucks history.
There is a reason people chant his name, and it’s because he’s one of the few players in Canucks history who can rise up and just put on an absolute beast of a game or rise up and have a huge moment when the team needs it.
And on Monday night, yeah, his four points were the main reason the Canucks escaped with anything from this game.
Even when it looks like he’d rather be anywhere else in the world than playing hockey, the dude can still have games where he drops people with huge hits:
And piles up points on the board:
As the entire world noted, that is JT Miller’s first goal on an NHL goalie since October, meaning he went two months on an extended No Nut November run.
That lethal shot of his came through, though, tying the game up for Vancouver.
And we would be remiss if we didn’t hand out credit to Nils Höglander, whose hard pursuit of the puck and dodging through three Montreal players like Boris Becker paying taxes led to the slick pass to JT Miller for the one-timer. It was honestly one of Nils’ better games and continues a trend as of late where we’re seeing both the GOTI style of hockey Rick Tocchet seemingly wants from him, along with some of the razzle-dazzle offensive hockey we know he has within him.
Best welcome back to the show
For some reason, Guhle just had it in for Lekkerimäki in the opening frame, as Jonathan once again found himself stapled to the boards for daring to try to go near the net:
Hockey fans appreciate that stuff; there is a reason the crowd was so incredibly amped for the game.
Don’t get me wrong; nobody appreciates an efficient dump-in and line change more than me, but sometimes, seeing your team try to murder the opposition for 20 minutes is a good way to get fans into the game.
Best question of the day
Yes, yes it was.
And with that power play, the Habs got two very good looks at Kevin Lankinen.
The first was a tap-in attempt on a brilliant pass from Cole Caulfield that Kirby Dach (Who I just assume is the video game character Kirby who has recently swallowed a hockey player) just missed:
First off, huge shout out of respect to Cole Caulfield. Every time he was on the ice, the dude was making things happen. It just reminded me of a simpler time when other teams must have said the same thing about Elias Pettersson. Just that general feeling of uneasiness that something bad could happen to you at any time he was on the ice. Like playing red light, green light but with your ears plugged.
Speaking of evil, nasty men, Lane Hutson was also playing, and let me tell you, I am so sorry to the teams that have to face Quinn Hughes. Watching Quinn Hughes when he’s fighting on your behalf is a joyful event because he’s doing this for you. You don’t stop to think about the fact that the men on the other side of the ice have families, and Quinn is about to embarrass them for an entire game of hockey.
I even had a “Quinn Hughes on Temu” joke lined up for Lane Hutson, but I have to say, I apologize, I didn’t know your game young man. Obviously, I knew of Hutson, and I had read about him, but I had heard he was all flash and no sizzle. The old-fashioned scouting report of “good luck with trying all that in the NHL, kid” at play.
Well, after Monday night, holy hell, this kid can play. He had the Canucks scared almost every time he was on the ice, and while he doesn’t have the edge work of Quinn Hughes, nor the puck control or shot speed of the Canucks captain, Lane Hutson is a faster skater. So when he drives into the offensive zone, it’s like watching a rocket take off. Quinn backs you off with his Steph Curry edge work, while Lane Hutson just hits all three mushrooms and tears off in his Mario Kart.
If this kid can find a way to slow the game down and control the offensive zone, Montreal has an absolute stud on their hands.
But, like I said, end-to-end rushes? No problem, Lane Hutson has you covered:
Okay, look, burning around Noah Juulsen is almost a rite of passage for players in the league, but it’s still impressive that he can take off from behind his own net and seven seconds later, he’s almost dragging the puck through your cross, trying to tuck the puck into your net.
Best staying on brand
If it feels like the Canucks only ever get 20 shots a game, then congratulations, your instincts are spot on. Monday night, even in what many consider an offensive splooging for Vancouver, the Canucks still only managed 20 shots.
You know how many shots they have on the season? 784 in 39 games, putting them in a death race with Detroit to stay out of last place in terms of shot production.
You know how many shots that averages out to? You guessed it, 20 shots a game.
Now, shot volume is a basic level of measurement, and there are many other underlying stories at play. But this team truly feels like it struggles with offensive production in all metrics. Relying on going on a shooting percentage heater probably isn’t a reliable strategy to carry you through the playoffs.
Remember, this is a team deploying Rick Tocchet hockey, and he always preaches North/South gameplay. Get the puck up ice quickly, get your shots on net, show them you have juice, eat your weird spaghetti, protect the guts, etc, etc. Yet despite that, the Canucks are the second-worst team at getting rebound shots on net.
I don’t know, I just find it amusing that this team that is all about efficiency and never going left or right at any costs. and usually just ends up playing such low-event hockey that can’t even generate shots off of rebounds. For a team that relies on getting point shots as much as they do, it feels like that should be higher.
Instead, the Canucks struggle to get shots (bottom of the league), struggle to get high-danger chances (bottom three in the league), yet maintain a middle-of-the-road goal production.
And hey, defensively? That structure is still there. The Canucks are still routinely putting up very good underlying numbers in terms of limiting opponents’ chances and using the GOTI system to its fullest.
It’s just that games this season have ended up being such non-event hockey, and without the wins coming with it, it has given the city some pretty dreadful hockey to watch.
All of which is without even going into the roster construction of the team. Maybe this is the only way Rick thinks he can play with the blue line he has? Maybe his system opens up with better puck-moving defencemen? Who’s to say?
All we know is Quinn Hughes fed a pass to Nils Höglander near the end of the first period, and he almost set up Danton Heinen for the back door tap in:
And that, my friends, is what we call an unexpected segue. The back door tap-ins of segues, if you will.
Best bouncing back
The start of the second period saw Derek Forbort fall to the ice before being helped to the locker room, and I won’t lie, it looked pretty bad:
The good news is he returned to the bench later in the game, eventually getting to penalty kill on the overtime goal.
Best Rip Wheeler mode
Lekkerimäki had a strong game, and was also instrumental in JT Miller’s second goal of the game.
How, you ask? By taking the delightfully accurate bank pass from Tyler Myers and skating the puck onto the net:
Now, I don’t want to use high school psychology here, so I don’t care WHY JT Miller looks so unimpressed scoring that goal. I choose to believe that he had murder in his heart tonight and wanted to destroy Montreal. He didn’t want tap-ins; he wanted to rip clap bombs all day, 24/7. He wanted to overpower them and leave them weeping at his feet.
I don’t know, I think you just kind of have to laugh at how nonplussed he looks after tapping in that rebound. Dude looks like he just set down his beer and can’t remember where he left the TV remote, and then here comes his personal hype man, Tyler Myers, punching his chest and giggling away.
Best follow up
Speaking of Lekkerimäki, he quickly made it 3-1 Vancouver when JT Miller and Brock Boeser combined to start a rush up the ice that saw Jonathan having the audacity to look off the Chaos Giraffe:
It’s cliche, but man alive, that’s a goal scorer’s goal. Tyler Motte could run that play a thousand times, and he would, at most, hit a post if he was lucky. There’s a swagger and confidence on that shot that normal people like you and I don’t get in life.
I also like the fact he just shot the puck. Even if it wasn’t the captain of chaos himself looking across from him, give me the rookie taking that shot all day, every day.
Unless it’s the playoff and it’s Game 7, then you have to pass it to Tyler Myers. I just know within the very bottom of my soul that the Chaos Giraffe has a moment of divine greatness awaiting us. I know it.
Best shooter tutor
Fun fact, the Canucks are the fourth-highest shooting percentage team in the league! Try not to imagine this team if they ever actually do start shooting blanks. I beg of you. It will haunt your dreams.
Best meeting pressure with farts
As has become tradition in Vancouver, after the Canucks went up a couple of goals, they immediately sat back and tried to defend the lead the rest of the night. Which to be fair, it’s not like Vancouver has to pull up off the gas too much to stop the couple of chances a period they generate.
The end result as of late, however, has been teams scoring goals in these scenarios, and Montreal was no different. At least with Montreal, they were honourable enough to express their intentions, as they almost immediately scored off of two offensive rushes into the Canucks zone:
Twice in a row, the Habs broke through the GOTI, only to be denied by Kevin, but if you give a team enough shots, eventually life, ah, ah, ah, finds a way:
Yes, that is noted Lekkerimäki killer Kaiden Guhle feathering a puck on net, scoring a goal that quick frankly looks more suited to the Vancouver Canucks. Why bother scoring a nice East/West goal when you can just float a puck in through a screen and off the other team’s defenseman instead? Noah Juulsen ends up getting a piece of the puck, helping it elude Kevin Lankinen, making it a one-goal lead.
And yes, that is also Carson Soucy once again failing to box someone out of the crease, as Carson had a return to form on this night as the “Wtf is that, what happened to Carson Soucy?” hockey player. I don’t get him this season; some nights, he’s the reliable friend who helps you move because he has a truck, and some nights, he’s your cousin who deals drugs on the side and was recently fired from Denny’s.
Juraj Slafkovsky almost scored on the next shift; if you want further proof that the ice was now firmly tilted in Montreal’s favour:
Again, this feels like a play Rick Tocchet drew up. Montreal dumps the puck in, then goes Red Dead Redemption mode and gets on their horse, forechecks Vincent Desharnais into a turnover, then immediately turns and fires a pass into the middle of the slot for a shot on net.
Kirby Dach then almost scored a few shifts later after Vancouver let him sneak in from the point to unleash a one-timer from the slot:
The Canucks were once again stuck in “bend don’t break” mode, clutching to a one-goal lead.
Best power outage
I miss Elias Pettersson if only because at least we could argue about deployment and who got custody of Quinn Hughes and PP1.
Instead, the Canucks failed to generate much of anything except this slick shot from Garland:
This is also a perfect example of JT Miller just being a really smart offensive player. The fake shot into the one stride before quickly passing it down low to Garland is just an absolute chef’s kiss moment.
Best starting off strong
You know how third periods should always start? With Tyler Myers stripping someone of the puck and racing for a breakaway:
Look, clearly Rick Tocchet has calmed down CG57’s game, we all know that. Nothing wrong with that at all, it’s helped rein in his more egregious offensive dalliances with the puck.
But I won’t lie, I have enjoyed the games Hughes has been out if, for no other reason, we’re seeing a bit of that old end-to-end rush juice Chaos Giraffe can bring to a game.
Look, dude was a post away from banking that in and restoring a two-goal lead. That goes in; it’s the stuff of legends. That’s the world of hockey I want to live in, the world where I can just say, “Bar down, Game 8,” and you all know exactly who and what I am talking about. Those shared joys and traumas are what make this journey worth it, damn it.
Best blowing it all at once
Moments after the post was hit, Lane Hutson took things into his own hands, driving the puck on net, leading to a Dach tip-in on the power play:
The Canucks diamond penalty kill didn’t really adjust to the puck movement, so when Tyler Myers rushed up to close the gap on Hutson, Derek Forbort doesn’t slide over, so once again, someone sets up shop in the crease all by themselves. I think everyone WANTED to switch coverage as the play developed, I don’t doubt they had good intentions, it just sort of fell apart when Hutson started making “vroom vroom” noises with his stick.
Best foregone conclusion
With the Canucks reeling, Lane Hutson once again took over, this time by keeping the puck in the zone and racing down the boards before throwing the puck in off of Quinn Hughes’ skate, beating Kevin Lankinen:
Bit of bad luck involved for sure, but also a very smart play from the fastest kid alive.
I kept hearing about him skating the puck around the net and away from the play, but you know what? He felt aggressively direct on this net. Like I could be at a work function, and he’d have no problem telling me that people were worried about the casual way I was dressing lately.
Best crime and punishment
You know the good thing about chaos? Sometimes, it’s a ladder:
Yes, with his team in dire need of help, Tyler Myers did what he does best in physical games, and that’s throwing petty revenge hits. I’m telling you, if there is one guy on the other team I am never hitting, it’s Tyler Myers.
Kiefer Sherwood is already going to hit you, so who cares about that?
Tyler, though? He sleeps through some games if he goes untouched. But if you dare try and hit him? Nobody chases down revenge like Tyler on the Canucks, nobody. Tall dudes don’t like being hit; I think it’s the equivalent of that scene in 300 where they made Xerxes bleed and realize his mortality. It just rattles them every time.
So, with Cole Caulfield in the box for a temper tantrum, once again, JT Miller stepped up, this time with the perfect pass to Jake DeBrusk:
The subtlety of Miller’s game is just always so impressive. Skating downhill like that, then loading up the shot and adding that half-second delay before turning it into a pass? That’s unhinged. That’s vicious stuff. As a goalie, I would absolutely loathe players like JT Miller for embarrassing me with those plays. He just thinks the game so well, even if back-checking isn’t always his thing.
Best Grant Fuhr
Officially, Kevin Lankinen had terrible numbers with a .792% save percentage, but two own goals and an overtime goal, mixed in with several massive saves he had to make? He wasn’t the problem on the night.
The defence, on the other hand, was the main issue. Carson Soucy completely whiffs on a hit, which results in Lankinen having to make a five-alarm save in the third period:
I honestly have no idea what’s going on with Soucy. Some nights he’s fine, other nights he’s out here losing coverage and chasing hits. All I know is if you make a play that I would consider making on defence, then something has gone horribly wrong.
His inconsistent play has been one of the major reasons this Canucks defence has struggled this season.
Best Janet Jackson
Lane Hutson then decided to go full Quinn Hughes, racing down the ice and almost finding Brendan Gallagher with the tap-in attempt:
Montreal was so creative off the rush and in the offensive zone, which stood in stark contrast to the Vancouver Canucks simply existing.
Best sin bin issues
With the game coming to a close, yes, Nils had a little oopsie:
To be fair, that wasn’t the worst offence in the world. And I think Rick Tocchet would appreciate Nils at least taking the penalty because he was trying to battle hard for the puck.
Part of me wishes players with no stick would just make a mad dash to the bench for a replacement stick because how useful are you on the ice without one, really? But the pig man decided to stay on the ice.
And to his credit, he played Lane Hutson without a stick better than anyone did on the night WITH a stick. He straight-up stuffed him towards the boards and denied him from crossing the border.
The problem is, yeah, he shoves Josh Anderson to the ice, and the puck isn’t near him. That’s interference at the end of the day, and the refs called it. Fair or not, it’s another late-game penalty from Höglander.
Which quickly resulted in Montreal putting the game away in overtime.
Best closing it out
It’s good to have dreams:
A four-on-three with Nick Suzuki having time and space to shoot the puck? Yeah, goodnight, Irene.
Another loss, another point gone. Good battle from the Canucks, but how many times can you say that in a season and still have a smile on your face.
The optimistic amongst you will be happy they managed to get a point and will be hopeful that things will balance out once Elias Pettersson and Fil Hronek get back.
The pessimistic amongst you will enjoy the fact Community is now streaming on Paramount Plus and will never think of this game again.
As for the rest of us, we will sit back and wonder what it’s going to take to get this team back on track because, at this point, the season is starting to feel a bit too shaky.
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