Vancouver Canucks physically and mentally prepare for Game 5

The Vancouver Canucks are on home ice Thursday, May 16 at 7:00 PM PT for the puck drop in Game 5 of the team's deadlocked series with the Edmonton Oilers.

The Canucks have pushed aside the disappointments in the Game 4 loss in Edmonton and enter Game 5 with both a renewed purpose and the home-field advantage.

While the Canucks have done well playing on the road especially in the Nashville series, there really is no place like home as the Wizard Of Oz's Dorothy once said.

Pregame Prattle: JT Miller did not need to apologize and playing for a higher purpose

Coach Rick Tocchet said on Wednesday that he received a text message from JT Miller apologizing for his play in Game 4. In his postgame press conference on Tuesday night, Miller talked about how he felt personally responsible for the loss. One or two plays do not define the player, and Miller had no reason to apologize.

In addition to playing for the series lead on May 16, the Canucks will be unified in another way, remembering one of their own on his birthday. Former Canucks player Rick Rypien, who played for Vancouver from 2005-2011, would have been 40 years old on May 16. He was small by hockey standards at 5'11" but mighty.

Rypien tragically took his own life on August 15, 2011, at the age of 27 after years of dealing with clinical depression. The Canucks have never forgotten about Rypien, turning the tragedy into an opportunity to educate and support mental health initiatives. The team's social media account honored him on Thursday.

With a deadlocked Stanley Cup Playoff series and the legacy of Rick Rypien in their minds and hearts, the Canucks are expected to come out firing on all cylinders on Thursday night with Tuesday night's loss in the rearview mirror. Go Canucks!