3 takeaways from the Canucks’ frustrating 5-1 loss to the Winnipeg Jets
The Vancouver Canucks were looking to rebound after their 4-0 loss to the Winnipeg Jets on Monday night. They got a sigh of relief as captain Bo Horvat took warm-up and was dressed for the game after taking an Alex Edler shot off his foot in the previous game. Horvat looked like he was in so much pain after being the victim of friendly fire and it was nice to see him not miss a game from that.
Like the game before, it was another frustrating contest as the Canucks couldn’t buy a goal until the dying minutes of the game. It included some very inexcusable penalties and poor defensive mistakes.
With the outlook of the playoffs getting slimmer, it’s like the Canucks are deciding to write their names in the Death Note instead of a Shinigami doing it for them.
Anyways, here are three takeaways from Wednesday’s 5-1 loss to the Jets.
Hellebuyck and the posts were hard to solve
Connor Hellebuyck sure loves playing Vancouver and is playing some very good hockey as of late. The Canucks couldn’t find a way to solve him as he was making all kinds of saves out of nowhere.
Hellebuyck has given up nine goals against the Canucks this season on 149 shots which makes a .949 save percentage according to The Athletic’s Thomas Drance.
It was almost like he was doing his best Thatcher Demko impression. Jimmy Vesey got two of the best Canucks chances of the night but couldn’t beat Hellebuyck.
Jimmy Vesey looking for his first goal as a Canuck gets a couple good chances but is denied by Hellebuyck. #Canucks pic.twitter.com/NdETCjdZ0K
— Sportsnet 650 (@Sportsnet650) March 25, 2021
Late in the third, Hellebuyck’s bid for a second straight shutout at Rogers Arena was denied by Nile Hoglander but it was far too little and far too late.
However, it just wasn’t the goaltender the Canucks had a hard time solving, the goalposts weren’t doing them any favours either. They hit the posts about five times Wednesday and it was just ridiculous that none were going in.
Jake Virtanen hit the post on the breakaway and J.T. Miller hit the crossbar on this chance.
👀👀💔💔 pic.twitter.com/Xah9mebUiL
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) March 25, 2021
Luck wasn’t on the Canucks side and hitting all those posts kind of sums up their season because they have hit quite a lot.
Too many, too many men penalties
The too many men on the ice penalty is probably the most embarrassing penalty to take. One brain fart of a line change and your team is shorthanded.
The Jets took had too many players on the ice in the first and in the second, the Canucks decided to do the make-up call instead. They did not take a bench minor once, but twice. The first one looked like they got confused on who was getting a penalty.
To add insult to injury, the Jets scored on both ensuing power plays. Talk about writing your name in the Death Note. Just poor timing and communication from the team and these penalties really should not happen at all.
Andrew Copp couldn’t be stopped
The Canucks couldn’t find a way to stop Andrew Copp. Before this game, Copp has six on the season and just two in his last ten games. He was like a cop(p) in pursuit of a criminal only this time he was chasing goals and he scored four of them. He is the first player in the entire NHL to score four this season.
He got two on the power play, one in the empty netter and another that included some poor defensive coverage from Tyler Myers.
https://twitter.com/HeresYourReplay/status/1374949640974569478
It was nice for the Jets to get some depth scoring and it would have been nice for the Canucks to get some on Wednesday.
Other Notes
- Myers logged14:07 which included a three-minute shift in the third. He also had a two-minute shift in the second which resulted in Mark Scheifele’s goal.
- Demko stopped 31 shots and did play well despite giving up four goals.
- The line of Adam Gaudette, Tyler Motte, and Jayce Hawryluk had some good chances and showed some energy, especially in the first.
Next. Canucks Rewind: Brock Boeser’s NHL debut, and his time in Vancouver so far. dark
The Canucks will have six days off and won’t be playing until March 31st against the Calgary Flames. The puck drop is at 7:30 PM Pacific Time. Honestly, they need this break.