Vancouver Canucks Week #15 Outlook, Predictions: Last Big Trip
By David Joun
The Bottomline.
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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.
Next: Canucklehead Lament: GM Jim Benning is Risking his Job
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!