Mar 5, 2016; San Jose, CA, USA; Vancouver Canucks left wing Daniel Sedin (22) is congratulated after scoring a goal against the San Jose Sharks in the second half at SAP Center at San Jose. Mandatory Credit: Neville E. Guard-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 5, 2016; San Jose, CA, USA; Vancouver Canucks left wing Daniel Sedin (22) is congratulated after scoring a goal against the San Jose Sharks in the second half at SAP Center at San Jose. Mandatory Credit: Neville E. Guard-USA TODAY Sports /
Now for the Vancouver Canucks, it is more about next year than it is for this year.
The truth for the Vancouver Canucks is that the current team will not make the playoffs. When the Trade Deadline came and went, all signs pointed to the team trying to settle down and prepare for the 2016-17 season. That does not mean that the team will settle for nothing in the remaining matches of the season at hand. There are still a few handful of games to go in the NHL season, and it starts this week.
With three games on the schedule this week, here are your three storylines to watch this week:
Nikita Tryamkin’s name has now been floated about for many days, and it seems that Jim Benning would like to see the big Russian defender in action before this season is over. Expect Yannick Weber to be sent down through waivers to bolster the Utica Comets’ run to end the season.
Jacob Markstrom was spectacular in the win over the San Jose Sharks on Saturday. Wonder if he gets more action this week over the current starter Ryan Miller. Willie Desjardins did say he wants to play Markstrom a little more in the latter part of the season.
Injuries galore once again — the Canucks seem to be plagued with the injuries this year and with the same players. With Jannik Hansen and Radim Vrbata already out, the word is that Chris Tanev is not 100 percent and captain Henrik Sedin will miss some time. With no call-ups looking imminent, what will Willie Desjardins do with his lineup?
Starting the week off is the second game of a two-game California road trip after the win over San Jose in the Shark Tank. The Canucks seem to thrive on the road. Let’s jump right in to Week 23 and its Outlook Predictions.
Next: AWAY @ Los Angeles
vs. Los Angeles Kings (38-22-4) Monday, March 7th
Leading scorer: Anze Kopitar (19 goals, 55 points)
Keys to the game:
Net-front domination
Keep the special teams special
An all-or-nothing emotional fight
The Los Angeles Kings will roll into town a feisty bunch after a heated loss against the Anaheim Ducks which included this. Say hello to Kevin Bieksa living his life.
The Kings are going to be hungry, and hungry for rebounds. It will be up to the Canucks to clean up the play in front of Ryan Miller or Jacob Markstrom, whoever is in the net on Monday, so that the rebounds don’t all get buried by the Kings. Also on the other end of the rink, Jonathan Quick will not give up clean goals. Get bodies on net, get rebounds, and bury some dirty goals.
If there is something to take away from the San Jose win it is that Daniel Sedin is effective as the net-front on the powerplay when his brother is not there. The special teams survived (with minor bruises) a Shark attack and now it will look to continue to impress with the youngsters now taking over.
Lastly, the Canucks should feel really good about themselves. Holding onto the lead like that against a Sharks team is not easy. Markstrom was on his head at times. Use that as the pivot point, your reference guide for the rest of the season. Breathe some confidence into the youngsters. Let’s see that inner Ryan Kesler coming out from Jared McCann on Monday night.
Predictions
Nobody has predicted a Vancouver win.
For a Los Angeles Win:
The Canucks should play well but the Kings are… the Kings. They have owned the Canucks in the most recent meetings. Unless Miller or Markstrom steals a game for the Canucks, it will be a loss for Vancouver, especially without Captain Henrik.
3. 67. 1. 104. Final
Janik Biechler: Tough start to a tough week. The Kings are one of the best teams in the West, the Canucks are not.
Steve Boddy: Close loss, Jake Virtanen with a multi-goal performance!
Sarah Laug: Perhaps a close call, an overtime decision in the Kings’ favour.
Next: HOME vs. Arizona
vs. Arizona Coyotes (28-31-6) Wednesday, March 9th
The Arizona Coyotes and the Canucks are tied in the standings with 52 points each. The Coyotes, however, got some trades done on February 29th, most notably trading away Mikkel Boedker to Colorado in exchange for forward Alex Tanguay. Tanguary notched two goals and an assist in his one and only game as a Coyote. Fired up to go and lead this group of young Yotes, the veteran should not be overlooked, like how Shane Doan was overlooked by the Canucks.
That being said, if the Canucks lose this game, they have a legitimate chance of dropping into the last five spots in the NHL standings. If this home game is going to stay pretty even without captain Henrik and potentially Chris Tanev too, the Canucks have to be motivated enough to push the kids to not give up. Emotion, again, will be key lest Rogers Arena starts chanting the Matthews chant.
And to do that, the Canucks will need to shut down completely the second-worst shot generating team in the league the Coyotes are. Arizona has averaged just 27.7 shots this year but are virtually tied with the Pittsburgh Penguins in goals per game. What does this mean? They score on high-quality shots and not a barrage of weak shots. Shut them down the wing, clog up their rush, and don’t give anything easy.
Markstrom’s advanced stats show that he is a goaltender who thrives under high-danger situation. Get him in net and he might do wonders. Who knows.
Predictions
For a Vancouver Win:
1. 121. Final. 3. 104
Janik Beichler: I don’t care about losses as much as I used to anymore, thanks to three fellas who go by the names Auston Matthews, Patrick Laine and Jesse Puljujarvi. But please, dear Canucks, do not lose every game this week.
Steve Boddy: Arizona, folks, is in full tank mode.
Sarah Laug: I say Bo Horvat or Jake Virtanen scores the game winner here!
For an Arizona Win:
121. Final. 3. 104. 5
I can guarantee you a Canucks win if Jacob Markstrom starts on Wednesday and the Canucks don’t give Oliver Ekman-Larsson half the ice to work with the kids. But of course, that will never happen. Not this year.
Next: HOME vs. Nashville
vs. Nashville Predators (33-21-12) Saturday, March 12th
Right off the bat here — the Nashville Predators will not allow the Canucks to walk through the defence. They will clog up your rushes, pressure the points when they are defending, and stifle the cycle around the boards.
The Canucks are going to have to be a step quicker with the puck. Don’t try to get that extra step on the defenceman, just shoot. That also ties to my third point — the Predators are the second-best team in the NHL in terms of shot suppression. That is why they can survive this season despite Pekka Rinne being sub-par this year.
But their offence has stepped up mightily, too. Spearheaded by forwards like Ryan Johansen and Filip Forsberg, the Predators have claimed the top wildcard spot in the West. Their play of late certainly did not hurt — they are 7-0-3 in their last 10 games.
And to contain the Predators offence, the Canucks are going to do the exact same thing the Predators will do to defend. They will have to clog up the rush so Forsberg doesn’t roof a wrister off the rush and will have to take command of the boards and the play behind the goal line so that Johansen doesn’t tip in a feed to the goal mouth.
Prediction
For a Vancouver Win:
2. 104. 3. 151. Final
Steve Boddy: Nashville has had trouble containing the young guys all year. Youth will lead the team to a W.
Sarah Laug: I am going to hope that the Canucks win — so I can experience a win LIVE!
For a Nashville Win:
2. 104. 4. 151. Final
If Henrik is still out with Tanev for this game, no chance for the Canucks. Wonder if Granlund has something up his sleeve though. Tough game for Vancouver.
Janik Beichler: It’s Nashville. They’re good.
Next: The Bottomline
Oct 29, 2015; Dallas, TX, USA; Vancouver Canucks center Brendan Gaunce (50) skates in warm-ups prior to the game against the Dallas Stars at the American Airlines Center. The Stars defeat the Canucks 4-3 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports /
The Bottomline
It is time to reset.
What do I mean by a reset? It is time to refocus and aim for more realistic goals for the remainder of the season.
The playoffs are not the goal anymore. Nor is tanking for Auston Matthews. With Henrik Sedin and Chris Tanev injured alongside Jannik Hansen, Alex Edler, Brandon Sutter, and Radim Vrbata to start Week 23, it is time to just make the best of what the team can. The kids are getting their minutes — that is a fact led by Ben Hutton‘s team-leading ice times.
It is time to start resting some veterans and letting the youth run the show even if it raises a few eyebrows and a few more losses along the way.
Alex Burrows has caught a scent of that, too. With news of Nikita Tryamkin coming over from the other side of the Atlantic alongside Anton Rodin and Philip Larsen, veterans are going to be expendable as time passes. Edler will be back. Sutter will be back. Captain Hank will be back. Yes, the current core isn’t moving out overnight, but while the opportunity is here for the youth to become the core of this NHL team who says that they shouldn’t take on the challenge for just a couple of weeks or so?
Mind you, being a kid doesn’t mean one can’t outplay a veteran.
Lastly, I wonder if Tryamkin has a chance of coming over to Vancouver this week. Is there a chance to get him suited up this week? Unlikely, but something to look forward to. Tryamkin would be a perfect addition to have against the Saturday matchup against the Nashville Predators.
And that’s it! Hope you enjoyed our Week 23 Outlook and Predictions. It is going to be a challenging week, but one that also spells “opportunity” for the youth to make a statement.
