Jan 6, 2016; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Vancouver Canucks forward Bo Horvat (53) moves the puck against Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Eddie Lack (31) during the third period at Rogers Arena. The Vancouver Canucks won 3-2. Mandatory Credit: Anne-Marie Sorvin-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 6, 2016; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Vancouver Canucks forward Bo Horvat (53) moves the puck against Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Eddie Lack (31) during the third period at Rogers Arena. The Vancouver Canucks won 3-2. Mandatory Credit: Anne-Marie Sorvin-USA TODAY Sports /
The Vancouver Canucks will head out East for the last time this season as they wrap up their homestand Monday.
The Vancouver Canucks are playing a much more exciting brand of hockey lately, as evidenced by the OT period against the Tampa Bay Lightnings last Saturday. Bo Horvat and Sven Baertschi are coming to life to kick-start the second half, and Jacob Markstrom has played fantastic net minding for his club.
And yet, they simply cannot rise above the 0.500 win margin, now with 42 points in 42 games. Will 82 points in 82 games be enough to surpass the Anaheim Ducks, the Arizona Coyotes, the Calgary Flames, or the San Jose Sharks for that third seed in the Pacific Division? After all, those four clubs and the Canucks are all hovering around that .500 win margin, give or take a single point.
But the divisional match-ups will have to wait. The Canucks are playing three Eastern foes this week, which features a Roberto Luongo homecoming, an Alex Ovechkin showdown, and a potential Eddie Lack revenge.
Maybe I made it sound too fun. You know, the Canucks are going on the road to face the top two teams of the Eastern Conference this week. They are going to face Braden Holtby and Luongo. You know what that means — no fun.
Week #14 top scorer: Bo Horvat (4 goals, 5 points)
We have it all covered here at The Canuck Way, with predictions of our own. Let’s take a look at the upcoming week.
Next: vs. Florida
vs. Florida Panthers (25-12-4) Monday, January 11th
Leading scorer: Jaromir Jagr (14 goals, 30 points)
Twelve games. They have not lost since December 12th, 2015. Hence the key #4, just pray that you get something out of this game. Panthers lead their division with 54 points, and though they looked vulnerable at times during the last game against the Canucks (refer to the above highlights), they look unbeatable lately.
So here we go again, time to play streak breaker, right? Enter Emerson Etem, aided by Bo Horvat and Sven Baertschi.
Etem will draw into the lineup after being acquired from the New York Rangers and will be motivated to turn his career around, starting Monday. Let Etem play some meaningful minutes with decent linemates, and the Canucks will reap offence from the 23-year-old winger.
But that will be tough against the Panthers, who enter the week as the league’s best defence, averaging just 2.12 goals against a game.
Also, as I said last week with Shane Doan — please don’t let Jagr do his thing every time he plays. Doan had two goals last week, as I forewarned.
But first and foremost, it is Bobby Lou time. He comes into Vancouver well-rested and on a nine-game winning streak. That being said, the Canucks did well against the hot Eddie Lack coming to town last week. Feast on the emotion, feast on Lou and feast on the points that might fall on you at the mercies of the hockey gods.
Markstrom starts, according to Willie Desjardins on Sunday.
Our Predictions
I will actually pray before the game and watch in horror, should Bo, Sven, Markstrom, and Etem not show up for the game. I will take a hopeful win on this one, more of a “wish” than a prediction.
4. 104. 3. 97. Final
As for Janik Beichler:
4. 104. 2. 97. Final
Next: at Washington
@ Washington Capitals (32-7-3) Thursday, January 14th
Leading scorer: Nicklas Backstrom (13 goals, 41 points)
Keys to the game
Shut Ovi down
Get everything on Holtby
Discipline
PRAY BEFORE THE GAME
Don’t watch the game
If the Canucks survive a Panthers showdown, they will have great momentum going into this one, the first of a six-game Eastern road trip, the last one of its kind this season.
If you thought the Panthers’ defence was good, think again.
Here I present to you Alex Ovechkin’s Washington Capitals, with the league’s second best defence (2.15 goals against per game) and the second best offence (3.17 goals for per game). What does that translate to? The top team in the NHL with 67 points in 42 games — on pace for nearly 130 points on the season.
Let’s all take a deep breath and thank the NHL for letting the Canucks see them just twice a year.
So, here is the obvious. Get Ovi off the score board — the “Great 8’s” week started on Sunday with his 500th career goal and it will be a given to keep Horvi on Ovi at all times throughout the game. Maybe we don’t need to worry about him seeing how the team has shut down Stamkos one multiple occasions this season. Nevertheless, Ovi is never not a threat.
Also, Braden Holtby is putting himself in the mix for a Vezina running with a spectacular season. A .932 save percentage and a 1.93 goals-against average? Find ANY WAY to beat him, I pray. There is chance though, but it might have to come from the Sedins who have cooled off recently.
If the Canucks ever get frustrated, expect them to lose big-time. Penalties are a no-no this Thursday, as Washington boasts the league’s second-best power play, which scores more than 25 percent of the time.
The Canucks might be better off not trying to win this game, to actually win a winnable game in Carolina the next day.
Our Predictions
Again, I am going into the pray-and-duck protocol. Might get ugly… Again, still hope that Sedins have a star night and the youngsters just rock the night, right?
19. 1. 104. Final. 3
Janik Beichler:
0. 104. Final. 4. 19
Next: at Carolina
@ Carolina Hurricanes (18-18-7) Friday, January 15th
Leading scorer: Justin Faulk (14 goals, 31 points)
Keys to the game
Eddie Lack
Possession is life
Must-win on a back-to-back
Just 20 hours after playing the Capitals, Vancouver will face Eddie Lack’s Carolina Hurricanes, again. Hopefully Lack gets a second chance to play the Canucks. Hopefully Vancouver will beat him again for two full points.
The Canucks and the Hurricanes are remarkably similar, at least on the stats. Both are at the .500 win rate, and the goals for, goals against, power-play success, and penalty-kill success of the two clubs are right next to each other. But not the faceoffs. The Canucks sit last and the Hurricanes sit atop the league.
That is why possession is even more important in this match-up. The Canucks are going to be a tired bunch after the game against the top team in the league, and if they don’t dictate the puck possession, they are going to run out of gas by the third period. Chasing pucks for 40 minutes after playing the top team in the league the night before? Not a good idea.
I am going to guess that the Canucks are on the losing side of things after two games against two top-East foes, on their home ice. If the Canucks lose against a very winnable foe in Carolina, the team will not be very happy to say the least. In terms of momentum, Carolina is a big game.
Of course, I can see Henrik Sedin coming out and — after a loss to the Capitals — saying that it feels great to get a second kick at things just 20 hours after the last one went astray. It is going to be a tough one, boys.
Our Predictions
I think the two games in two nights will not do much to faze the young lineup the Canucks are planning to use. Figures that Jared McCann and Jake Virtanen won’t see all of these games and they will be energized to go, should they have lost to the Capitals. If they beat the Capitals or at least earn a single point, that will be a good confidence booster, as well. I will take the Canucks on this one.
109. 3. 104. Final. 2
Here’s Janik Beichler’s:
109. 4. 104. Final. 1
Next: The Bottomline
Jan 9, 2016; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Vancouver Canucks goaltender Jacob Markstrom (25) stops the puck after a shot by the Tampa Bay Lightning during the second period at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Anne-Marie Sorvin-USA TODAY Sports /
Chris Higgins is on his way out and Emerson Etem is on his way in. Markstrom will get one night off and Miller likely starts one of the back-to-backs. What does this mean?
Although the opponents are formidable — Washington and Florida — the Canucks are going to put up a fight. They are just starting to get their legs under them, and they have flexibility, and hence energy, to spare for some of these tough games. As long as the team stays tight to the buzzer in games against Florida and Washington, they will be satisfactory with something like a 1-0-2 or even a 0-0-3 record this week.
Expect Horvat and Baertschi to get good licks at the scoreboard. This week’s wild card is, obviously, Etem — I would love to see him with the two fellow youngsters.
Also of note, Luca Sbisa and Brandon Sutter join the Canucks on the roadtrip, though neither is certain to play this week. I would guess that by January 23rd, the last game of the road trip, Sbisa will have seen game action and Sutter might, too.
But as much as I like my predictions that favour the Canucks, I have a pretty good feeling that the week will turn out to be quite something else. Trust me on this, though, the next couple of weeks, starting with this one, will be hectic — on and off the ice. It will be exciting nevertheless.
So, what do you think? What are your predictions, and what do you think the impact of Etem and the lack of Higgins could have going into the roadtrip? Let us know in the comments below, or on twitter, @FSTheCanuckWay. Have a great week!
