Canucks: 2 takeaways from Vancouver’s 4-0 loss to Boston
The Vancouver Canucks landed in Beantown for game action against the Boston Bruins at TD Gardens. Here’s what happened when the rivalry was rekindled.
The Vancouver Canucks arrived in the city of Boston having gathered points in each of their past six games. After a 4-3 shootout loss in Carolina erased a five-game winning streak, Vancouver knew they would have their hands full trying to find the win versus the league’s second-best team, the big bad Bruins.
The Tuesday night showdown would be the first of two meetings this season (Second meeting on home ice on February 22nd). Nine years removed from the 2011 finals, the Canucks roster looking entirely different, yet the hatred between these two clubs remains just beneath the surface. The strong dislike between fans remains intact and it’s almost as if the players realize this, the battles each game are always fast-paced and entertaining.
Entering the contest there were a few questions hanging over the Canucks: Could Vancouver hang with the big dogs and prove they are a top-level franchise? Would Elias Pettersson find the back of the net again after a two-goal performance in Carolina? Could recent special team struggles be solved? Lots of questions for the head-to-head battle. It was bound to be a hard-fought game.
The solid performance of Jacob Markstrom
It was a very poor outing for the Canucks pretty much in its entirety. On the bright side of things, Jacob Markstrom, although he didn’t earn the team two points, had a considerably good game. He was beaten four times through 60 minutes of hockey, but he finished the game having faced 42 shots, turning down a total of 38.
The Swedish netminder did everything in his power to keep the Canucks in the game versus their east coast nemesis. For the most part, he kept the Bruins power play at bay. The Bruins failed to convert up a man until late in the third period, but by then the game was already over. According to Natural Stat Trick, Boston had seven shots on target over the span of their six man-advantage chances. That’s good numbers for Vancouver and Markstrom as they managed to kill off a long five-on-three power play.
But at the end of the day, the efforts of Markstrom were never going to be enough to help the team secure two points. The Canucks came out stale, couldn’t generate scoring chances and were simply outworked by a better team. Hats off to Markstrom, he continues to strive for greatness and he’s arguably the team MVP.
The disorderly power play
What was once a top-five power play for the majority of the season, is now in serious danger of falling outside the league’s top-10. That’s right, the Canucks are struggling mightily when trying to convert up a man on the power play. Things have been bad lately and it didn’t get much better in Boston on Tuesday night.
Vancouver went 0/3 on the man-advantage and only registered a single shot that Tuuka Rask was forced to turn away. That output of shots on the net will never cut it in professional hockey, especially in the NHL, but Vancouver came out firing on all cylinders — they just couldn’t hit the target.
The effort was noticeable compared to games prior, but you’ll never win the hockey game if you can’t hit the net or beat the goalie. The Canucks failed to do both. Rask is without a doubt an elite calibre backstopper, and 24 shots through 60 minutes aren’t going to be enough to get the job done.
Final thoughts…
The Canucks may have won 14 of their last 19 games and be sitting on top of the Pacific Division, but the 4-0 loss to the Bruins puts things into perspective a bit for Vancouver. There is clearly still work to be done. 28 games are still to be played in the regular season for Van-City and every one of them counts as much as the last. The Bruins return to Vancouver on February 22nd and the Canucks will be hungry and ready for the test.
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Maybe a 4-0 beatdown by the Canucks’ most hated rivals is exactly what Vancouver needs to stay sharp and keep the war going. The battle continues in Minnesota on Thursday. Puck drops at 5 PM.