Canucks lose third straight game at hands of Canadiens

The Vancouver Canucks lost to the Montreal Canadiens last night. The final score was 3-1 from Rogers Arena in Vancouver.

What’s plaguing the Vancouver Canucks right now? It’s a complicated question, but a question that fans and the team are trying to find the answer to. I don’t think there’s one answer to this question. The defence hasn’t been as good as it was in the early stages of the season, but neither has the offence.

Even the goaltending hasn’t been as good as it was in October, so when a team’s defence, offence, and goaltending all take a bit of a dip, it’s no surprise that the team starts to fall lower in the standings. As of right now, the Canucks are 11th in the Western Conference and 23rd in the overall standings.

Jake Virtanen takes a twirl on the first line

In an attempt to get some more scoring at 5-on-5, head coach Travis Green chose to shake up his lines a bit. Going into last night, Jake Virtanen had eight points in his last ten games. Virtanen was put on the first line alongside Elias Pettersson and J.T. Miller, while Brock Boeser skated on Bo Horvat‘s wing.

The Canucks have had trouble scoring, so it makes sense that the coaching staff would look to a player who has scored goals in two straight losses. Unfortunately, the Canucks’ struggles to score at even strength continued, as their lone goal came with the man advantage.

Gaudette shoots his shot

With a perfect wrist shot after he found himself with some time and space at the top of the left circle, Adam Gaudette beat the Canadiens’ goaltender short side. It’s not easy to beat Carey Price short side.

“The Hockey Gaud”, as he’s known on social media, was finally rewarded for his solid play as of late. Last night’s goal was Gaudette’s first in nine games, but the 2018 Hobey Baker Award Winner has been making serious strides in his two-way game as of late.

He’s been forechecking harder, backchecking with more urgency, and has been doing all the things that Canucks’ head coach Travis Green demands from his players. If Gaudette’s going to remain in the third line center role, he needs to continue to do these things — but he also needs to score.

Last night, Gaudette scored the Canucks’ first goal of the game, and nearly had the second, as well. If it weren’t for a coaches challenge revealing Josh Leivo’s left skate crossing the blueline before the puck did on the Canucks’ zone entry, Gaudette’s would have his eighth goal.

Even with the time and space he was given, beating Price is no easy task, so it was good to see Gaudette rifle one past the Anahim Lake, British Columbia native. Gaudette’s power play marker stood as his team’s lone goal.