Vancouver Canucks Injury Report: Canucks start 4-game Home Stand Injured
The Vancouver Canucks will start their four-game home stand without their No. 2 center Brandon Sutter and their top defenseman Chris Tanev.
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The Vancouver Canucks look to welcome the Dallas Stars, the Boston Bruins, the Buffalo Sabres, and Alain Vigneault’s New York Rangers in the upcoming home stand. Over the week, they will look to gain some ground in the tight Pacific Division race.
The Canucks will have to face some of the league’s best offense without their top defenseman, Chris Tanev, and their top defensive forward, Brandon Sutter. They will also be missing Jake Virtanen, Ben Hutton, and Chris Higgins to start the home stand.
After blocking yet another shot to his hand, Tanev is out, and Biega is expected to fill Tanev’s void. Tanev figures to return soon, but Sutter’s injury is a blow to the Canucks.
Brandon Sutter has undergone successful surgery and will be out 4-6 weeks.
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) December 2, 2015
RELEASE → https://t.co/dM9DEex2Wk pic.twitter.com/ffAXjoTLqu
So far, Sutter’s absence has put sophomore Bo Horvat on the second line, the first PK unit, and the second PP unit. Playing as the team’s go-to defensive centerman has cost the team dearly, as well as Horvat’s own stats.
Missing Sutter and his 53.6 percent face-off percentage, the Vancouver Canucks now sit dead-last in the league in face-off win percentage, at just 46.8 percent. Horvat’s 49.4 percent is the least of their concerns. Adam Cracknell is at 38.4 percent and McCann is at 34.8 percent.
Tanev is expected to return in a couple of days. Hopefully Biega can make his case to stick with the Canucks with Weber struggling to play a shut-down top-four role. Both of their contracts expire at the end of this season.
Related: Chris Tanev – A Defensive Prototype
Especially with the Rangers, the Bruins, and the Stars in town, you have to be worried about the team defense. Those three teams are in the league’s top seven in terms of goal scoring. The toughest opposition may just be their old coach’s current team, as the New York Rangers also boast the top defense in the league.
Furthermore, the Canucks will be missing rookie Jake Virtanen from the lineup, who left the Anaheim game after taking a cross-check from Ryan Getzlaf. The right winger does not figure to be in the lineup starting the home stand.
Virtanen will be out "a little bit longer," said coach. "The other guys are closer."
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) December 3, 2015
Virtanen has yet to skate. #Canucks
Because of Virtanen’s injury and also the injury to Chris Higgins, the Vancouver Canucks have recalled Ronalds Kenins from the Utica Comets.
The Canucks have been suffering a ton on the injury front lately. Below is the graph of all teams’ man-games-lost and quality of injuries for each team, courtesy of ManGamesLost.com
Courtesy of ManGamesLost.com
Also, with Ben Hutton out, the Canucks definitely need their veteran defensmen to step up and not give away easy “pizzas”. Of course, the latest loss came in light of Alex Edler’s OT give-away, and Dan Hamhuis has lately been on the wrong end of the play too many times as well.
Next: The Canucks are Well Prepared for the Post-Sedin Era
With the Pacific and the play-off berth still in their sights, the Vancouver Canucks will need to shut down the league’s top offense to win some points during this homes tand. Ryan Miller and Jacob Markstrom have been good lately. Go and win them some games, boys.