Canucks: 3 takeaways from the 2-1 loss to the Ottawa Senators
It wasn’t a great start to the week for the Vancouver Canucks.
After wrapping up their four-game homestand with a 4-2 victory on Saturday night, the team headed East to continue their mini-series against the basement-dwelling Ottawa Senators. This contest not only marked the first time that the Canucks hit the road since their team-wide COVID-19 outbreak, but it also marked the start of their final Ontario tour of the season, which would present the team with four games in six nights.
As expected, the Canucks came out flat to start the first period, with players undoubtedly battling both travel and respiratory fatigue throughout the evening. They were able to find their legs again towards the end of the tilt, but it was ultimately too little, too late. The team would end up falling to the Senators by a final score of 2-1.
Yes, this game did bring the team’s current belief-o-meter down a peg, but not all is lost.
The Canucks are set to face off against the Senators on Wednesday afternoon for the final time this year, and they have the chance to close out their four-game series with a .500 record. Plus, the team still has games in hand compared to their divisional foes, setting the stage for a playoff push that could come down to the numerical wire.
Are the current numbers in the Canucks’ favour? A few might shake their head in agreement, but, in all likelihood, that sentiment probably won’t land with the rest of the fanbase.
Nonetheless, the team has not been mathematically eliminated by the hockey gods just yet, so we might as well enjoy the heart and soul ride as long as we can.
Here are three takeaways from last night’s loss to the Senators:
1. Braden Holtby is playing his best hockey of the year
In other words, Braden Holtby is dialled in.
The former Washington Capitals netminder entered Monday night’s contest on a personal three-game winning streak, and he appeared poised to continue his success.
He was once again the team’s best player throughout 60 minutes of play, stopping 25 of 27 shots. His rebound control and puck management were solid, and he was a big reason that the players in front of him still had a fighting chance to win for the majority of the game.
Holtby hasn’t shown any signs of fatigue lately, and he continues to come up with timely saves in all situations, including robbing rookie Tim Stützle late in the second period on a delayed penalty, as well as back-to-back denials in the final few minutes of the third period.
Chris Tierney skates onto the loose puck and gets a chance in on goal but Braden Holtby says no ❌ #Canucks #GoSensGo pic.twitter.com/N9RNFgracS
— Sportsnet 650 (@Sportsnet650) April 27, 2021
Over the last four games, Holtby has sported a .933 SV% and 2.26 GAA, and has, more importantly, provided his team with Vezina-quality goaltending at just the right time. And if the Canucks want any hope of capturing the fourth and final spot in the Scotia North Division, they’ll need to hope and pray that Holtby can continue to put up consistently solid performances on a nightly basis.
2. Too many high-risk plays, not enough high-danger scoring chances
In just a matter of 48 hours, Canucks hockey went from smart and simple to messy and over-complicated.
Was this expected from a team who hadn’t played or practiced in over three weeks as a result of a highly infectious and symptomatic respiratory disease that is most likely still causing lingering problems for many players and coaches? You bet.
But when you’re playing the same team for the third consecutive time, and when you’re coming off of a convincing win against said team just two nights prior, you would hope that everyone on the roster would make a committed effort to replicate their previous two-point success.
Unfortunately, the Canucks weren’t able to deliver.
Travel fatigue and COVID aftermath aside, the team appeared to always make the wrong decisions with the puck. Whether it was passing up the middle when trying to leave the defensive zone, ignoring the simple plays in the neutral zone, or just carelessly icing the puck with tired bodies on the ice, the Canucks seemed to find numerous ways to shoot themselves in the foot on Monday night.
Most notably, defencemen Nate Schmidt, Travis Hamonic and Tyler Myers seemed to have consistent trouble with the puck on their stick.
On numerous occasions, these three veteran blueliners, with minor error contributions from sophomore Quinn Hughes, made high-risk decisions that, quite frankly, had very little hope of succeeding. Most of these mistakes resulted in high-quality puck possession and pressure from the Senators for much of the night, with one of those Schmidt flubs even finding the back of the net for the game’s opening goal.
Norris opens the scoring as he waits on the 2-on-1 and beats Holtby. #Canucks #GoSensGo pic.twitter.com/pIBJ0lVqWk
— Sportsnet 650 (@Sportsnet650) April 26, 2021
Of course, it’s hard to throw all of the blame onto a defensive core that still continues to go to battle on a nightly basis with so much heart and soul, especially when a handful of them bounced back a bit in the third period. But if the team wants to give themselves even the smallest chance at a postseason appearance, they’ll need to clean up their defensive fundamentals quickly.
3. The kids are alright
With most of the roster putting up mediocre outings, it was refreshing to see strong performances from rookies Nils Höglander and Olli Juolevi.
The 20-year-old winger continues to play an important role in the top-six forward group, providing energy, grittiness and determination every time he steps over the boards. Although he technically didn’t record a shot on goal on Monday night, Höglander was still able to get him into dangerous scoring areas throughout the game, including two of the team’s best opportunities halfway through the second period.
https://twitter.com/Sportsnet650/status/1386835047882231808?s=20
With just under a dozen games left, fans and management alike are hoping that Höglander can transform these glorious chances into goal celebrations.
Meanwhile, it appears that Juolevi is starting to become more and more comfortable as a National Hockey League defenceman.
The former 5th overall pick has become a mainstay on the Canucks’ third defensive pairing, taking over from Jordie Benn after he was dealt to Winnipeg at the trade deadline, and he continues to improve his overall gameplay each night.
Juolevi finished the contest with 15:30 of ice time, as well as one goal, two registered shots and a plus-one rating. Juolevi’s first-period tally marked the second goal of his career (with both tallies coming against Ottawa), and it also showcased resiliency by helping the team bounce back from 1-0 less than five minutes after the Senators opened the scoring.
It’s not expected that Juolevi will light up the scoresheet for the remainder of the campaign, but he’s finally starting to show the promise that Canucks fans have been longing for since he was drafted in 2016.
But, let’s be real. The team would also be more than thrilled if the 22-year-old Helsinki native could steadily add to his point totals over the next three weeks so we can read more tweets like this one:
Juolevi now fourth in goals among #Canucks defencemen. One back of Hughes. Also has two more goals than Edler, Hamonic, and Chatfield combined.
— Rob Williams (@RobTheHockeyGuy) April 26, 2021
He has... two goals.
Other newsworthy notes:
- Goaltender Thatcher Demko is listed as day-to-day after sustaining an injury during the morning skate on Monday. In typical Canucks fashion, the team had just assigned rookie Michael DiPietro back to Utica 24 hours prior to the Demko injury, forcing them to dress 20-year old Arturs Silovs as the backup.
- Forward Jake Virtanen participated in a spirited bout with Senators’ forward Ryan Dzingel, just moments after Ottawa opened the scoring in the first period. This was Virtanen’s first fight of the year, but many fans would much rather that he (and the rest of the bottom six) contribute to the scoresheet instead. The 24-year-old Langley native hasn’t found the back of the net in six games, to go along with five shots on goal and a minus-two rating.
- After the Canadiens also doubled up on the Flames by a score of 2-1 on Monday night, they continue to hold onto the fourth and final spot of the Scotia North Division, with six points up on Calgary and ten points up on Vancouver. Where it gets interesting? The Canucks have five games in hand against the Habs, and it doesn’t look like Montreal’s schedule is getting any easier…
The Canucks will be able to enjoy a rest day before facing off against the Ottawa Senators for the final time this season on Wednesday afternoon at 2:30 pm PST (Yes, you read that right).
dark. Next. Canucks: 3 takeaways from 4-2 over Sens
What were your thoughts on the Canucks’ 2-1 loss against the Senators? Make sure to drop a comment below!