The Vancouver Canucks (25-18-11) will attempt to hit the 4 Nations Face-Off break on a three-game win streak when they host the Toronto Maple Leafs (33-19-2) at Rogers Arena. The Canucks also have the chance to win consecutive games on home ice for the first time all season.

What we know

With the early 4pm puck drop, the Canucks did not hold a morning skate so their lineup for this afternoon’s game has not been confirmed. It’s expected Thatcher Demko will make a third straight start in goal. Demko has allowed one goal in his past two starts – a 3-0 shutout over Colorado on Tuesday and a 2-1 overtime victory in San Jose on Thursday night. In his last four games, Demko is 3-1 with a 1.25 GAA, a 95.2% save percentage and a shutout.
As a team, the Canucks are 5-1-1 in their last seven games and have moved above the playoff bar in the West and are just three points back of third place Los Angeles in the Pacific Division. The Canucks have allowed just 13 goals in those seven games – and five of them came in a 5-3 loss in Dallas last Friday.
Drew O’Connor netted the winner at the Shark Tank on a penalty shot in overtime. The winger acquired last week from Pittsburgh has now scored in back to back games. Dakota Joshua had the other Vancouver goal on Thursday – his first since December 18th in Utah. Tyler Myers, who celebrated his 35th birthday last Saturday, is heating up. The big blueliner has a goal and four assists in six games since returning from a three-game suspension.
The status of captain Quinn Hughes remains a mystery. Hughes has missed the past three games with an oblique injury. The Canucks did not practice on Friday so Hughes has not skated with his teammates since the pregame warm-up last Sunday night. We should find out more about Hughes and his availability for today’s game when Rick Tocchet meets with the media around 1:30pm.
After tonight, Hughes (Team USA), Kevin Lankinen (Finland), Elias Pettersson (Sweden) and Rick Tocchet (Canada) will join their respective teams for the 4 Nations Face-Off which starts on Wednesday in Montreal.

The opponent

Toronto arrives in town on a roll, having posted wins in Edmonton, Calgary and Seattle to start its Western road trip. On Thursday, the Leafs defeated the Kraken 3-1 at Climate Pledge Arena. Philiipe Myers, Bobby McMann and Matthew Kniews scored the Maple Leaf goals while Anthony Stolarz made 26 saves in his first game since a December 12th injury.
Mitch Marner returned to the Toronto lineup after missing Tuesday’s game in Calgary. Marner recorded the 500th assist of his career, which was also his team-leading 71st point of the season. William Nylander leads Toronto with 33 goals and is one of four 20-goal scorers in the lineup along with Knies and John Tavares who both have 21 and Auston Matthews with 20. Matthews has 18 goals in 24 career games against the Canucks.
Toronto has alternated three-game win streaks and losing streaks over its past 12 games. Since Christmas, however, the Leafs are 12-7 with a power play that has clicked at 30.4%.
Three of Toronto’s top defencemen have strong ties to Vancouver. Morgan Rielly hails from West Vancouver while both Chris Tanev and Oliver Ekman-Larsson spent time with the Canucks.
The Leafs are 8-1 against Pacific Division teams this season. Their lone loss came four weeks ago to the Canucks. Despite travel troubles getting to Toronto, the Canucks beat the Leafs 3-0 at Scotiabank Arena on January 11th. Kevin Lankinen posted his fourth shutout of the season in that game. At Rogers Arena, the Canucks have dominated the Maple Leafs winning seven straight games, 10 of 11 and incredibly 17 of the last 19 meetings.
Included in that run is a 3-2 win on February 12, 2022 in which Thatcher Demko faced a career-high 53 shots and made a career-high 51 saves.
Tonight’s referees: Graham Skilliter & Chris Schlenker
Tonight’s broadcasters: Chris Cuthbert & Craig Simpson on Hockey Night In Canada
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