Having finally re-established themselves in a wildcard playoff spot, the Vancouver Canucks (31-24-11) must refocus and defeat Utah Hockey Club (29-26-11) to add a small cushion on their lead and retain their place in the Western Conference. Utah currently trails Vancouver in the standings by four points with an equal amount of games played.
The Canucks, hosting Utah for the very first time, will be without center Filip Chytil on Sunday night after he suffered a concussion while playing against the Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday night.
Canucks Game Lineup
Nils Hoglander - Elias Pettersson - Jonathan Lekkerimäki
Jake DeBrusk - Pius Suter - Brock Boeser
Drew O'Connor - Teddy Blueger - Conor Garland
Dakota Joshua - Nils Aman - Kiefer Sherwood
Quinn Hughes - Filip Hronek
Marcus Pettersson - Tyler Myers
Derek Forbort - Victor Mancini
Kevin Lankinen, after a few days off, is confirmed to be the Canucks' starting goalie against Utah in what will be the second leg of Vancouver's penultimate back-to-back of the season. The Finn is 23-12-7 this season with a 2.55 GAA, a .904 save percentage, and four shutouts.
Utah Game Lineup
Clayton Keller - Nick Schmaltz - Logan Cooley
Alex Kerfoot - Barrett Hayton - Dylan Guenther
Lawson Crouse - Jack McBain - Josh Doan
Michael Carcone - Nick Bjugstad - Kevin Stenlund
Olli Maatta - Sean Durzi
Mikhail Sergachev - John Marino
Ian Cole - Michael Kesselring
Karel Vejmelka is confirmed to be Utah's starting goalie against the Canucks on Sunday night. The 28-year-old has quietly been outstanding for Utah this season, posting an 18-17-6 record, a 2.49 GAA, a .908 save percentage, and one shutout, which aren't fully reflective of his efforts.
How to watch the Canucks game
Sunday night's Canucks game will be streamed on Sportsnet Pacific and Utah16. For fans unable to watch the Canucks game, Sportsnet 650 will be the radio broadcast available for your listening.