3 preseason takeaways from Canucks vs. Flames (September 25th)

Silovs, Martin stand tall between the pipes

Tell us if you’ve heard this before, but the Canucks once again had to rely on their goaltending last night.

As previously mentioned, the road game was a bit of a wash, with the Flames putting star players such as Jonathan Huberdeau, Tyler Toffoli and Mackenzie Weegar up against Collin Delia and Michael DiPietro.

It was a little easier at Rogers Arena, especially given the roster construction, but that still didn’t mean Spencer Martin and Arturs Silovs weren’t put to work.

Martin did show signs of rust throughout the first two periods, allowing the first goal in the opening eight minutes, while also failing to find his post en route to the second tally.

Fortunately for his squad, however, the 27-year-old still managed to come up with big saves when Calgary continued to apply the pressure, turning aside 23 of 25 shots before Silovs came in for relief in the third period.

Silovs also impressed in his preseason debut, putting up 20 saves before eventually surrendering the overtime winner to Michael Stone.

The Canucks were outshot 45-28 on home ice, with both netminders putting up over .920 SV% performances.

Despite the third period heroics, however, it is expected that Silovs will start the season in Abbotsford, making way for Martin to fill the back-up role behind Thatcher Demko.

Regardless of who ends up behind Demko, however, it’s safe to say that goaltending will be the least of Vancouver’s concerns for the upcoming campaign.

Rathbone continues to impress

Could this be the year that Jack Rathbone cracks the roster? Based on last night’s play, he’s definitely making a case for himself.

The 23-year-old blueliner started the game on the first defensive pairing alongside veteran Luke Schenn, a position that was previously held by Quinn Hughes during the 2021-22 campaign.

Rathbone was also given the task of the PP1 quarterback and, to the delight of fans and media, didn’t look out of place in that role, either.

Rathbone led the team in ice time with just over 25 minutes, which included 8:00 on the man advantage and 5:07 on the penalty kill. He also registered three SOG and three blocks.

Given the backlog of blueliners on the left side, it still might be an uphill battle for Rathbone to make the opening night roster but, if he continues to play at this level, the coaching staff will definitely need to give him a well-deserved look.

Other notes:

• Vincent Arseneau gave fans something to cheer about in the first period, dropping the mitts and even holding his own with veteran fighter Milan Lucic.
• Fans at Rogers Arena were also treated to the line combination of Pettersson, Andrei Kuzmenko and Ilya Mikheyev, who have looked dangerous and intriguing together during training camp. Even though only Pettersson made his way onto the scoresheet, the trio showcased good chemistry and puck possession, with the young Swede centre also drawing two separate penalties during the game.
• The trio was short-lived, unfortunately, as Mikheyev left the game in the second period and did not return.

The Canucks will have two days off before hitting the ice at Rogers Arena on Thursday night against Seattle. Puck drop is set for 6:30pm PST.

What are your thoughts from the split squad games against Calgary? Let us know in the comments!