Canucks: 3 takeaways from the 6-5 shootout win against the Canadiens

Dude, where’s the defence?

This might feel like deja vu for many, but the Canucks have problems on the blueline.

Entering this shortened season, there were many question marks surrounding the top six defensive core; in particular, how they would perform without the likes of Chris Tanev and Troy Stecher.

To put it bluntly, it hasn’t been going well so far.

The Canucks blew four separate one-goal leads throughout 60 minutes of play, and each Montreal tally was connected to a breakdown in the defensive end. Fortunately, there was no shortage of goals from Vancouver, which helped mask some of the blueline miscues.

Of course, this offensive firepower isn’t sustainable over time, and the Canucks will need to figure out how to fix the blueline before it comes back to badly bite them.

To make matters worse, both Alex Edler and Travis Hamonic suffered injuries. Hamonic was able to remain in the game, but the same could not be said for Edler. He only played 6:58 before heading to the dressing room around the seven-minute mark of the second period.

Coach Travis Green did not provide any updates on his veteran blueliners during the post-game press conference, but we’ll all be keeping a close watch to see how this situation will unfold. Losing both players would be a massive blow to the already weakened backend, particularly on the penalty kill.

Not all is bad, though.

Quinn Hughes continued his impressive sophomore campaign, notching two more assists on 27:30 of ice time. This was second to Nate Schmidt, who logged just under 28 minutes. Both players looked shaky and out of position at times, but don’t expect that to carry over into the next game.

It’s also worth mentioning the solid NHL debut from Jalen Chatfield. The 23-year-old Michigan native, who has spent the past three seasons in Utica, didn’t look out of place on the backend. He played just over 15 minutes total, comfortably embracing different pairings, new responsibilities and additional ice-time in the third period after Edler was ruled out.

Don’t be surprised if management rewards Chatfield with a few more NHL games down the road, especially if the all-too-familiar injury bug makes its way back into the Canuck locker room.

Other notes:

• Horvat scored the shootout winner against Price in the fourth round, capping off his fantastic outing. He has notched four career shootout goals, all of which have been game-winners.
• The Canucks were much more disciplined during last night’s game, only making one trip to the penalty box. Unfortunately, they weren’t able to hold off Montreal’s red-hot power play and surrendered their eighth goal of the season while down a man. Their penalty kill continues to be one of the worst in the league, and they will need to make major improvements soon.
• Tyler Toffoli scored three goals in his return to Vancouver. Toffoli, who inked a four-year deal with Montreal during the offseason, has always had scoring success in Rogers Arena, notching 22 points in 21 games leading up to Wednesday night’s tilt. Toffoli’s strong performance set Canuck Twitter on fire, with many fans reigniting their negative feelings towards Jim Benning and co., and questioning how management couldn’t come up with a deal to keep the right-winger in town.
• Tyler Motte finished the game with one goal, three SOG and nine hits after 16:16 of ice time. The 25-year-old was having a tough time staying out of the penalty box at the start of the season but seems to have found his groove. Look for him to continually build upon his aggressive shutdown style of play that made him so fun to play against in the bubble.

Final thoughts:

Although there are still quite a few wrinkles that need to be ironed out, fans should’ve been able to wake up (somewhat) happy after yesterday’s performance. The team was able to bump their slump and secured an important two points in the all-Canadian division.

It was quite the rollercoaster ride from start to finish on Wednesday night, and even though it was entertaining to watch, the Canucks will need to quickly make some improvements if they want to win the second half of their back-to-back.

The Canucks will face the Canadiens again on Thursday at 6:00 PM PST.