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Head to Head: How the Vancouver Canucks and Predators match up

A head-to-head comparison of the Vancouver Canucks and the Nashville Predators ahead of their first-round playoff series.

By Brogan Houston

The Vancouver Canucks are set to face the Nashville Predators in the first round of the playoffs.
The Vancouver Canucks are set to face the Nashville Predators in the first round of the playoffs. / Donald Page/GettyImages
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Teddy Blueger: 68 GP, 6 G, 22 A, 28 P, +4

Anthony Beauvillier: 60 GP, 5 G, 12 A, 17 P, -8

Fun fact: Anthony Beauvillier has scored more points against the Predators than he has against the Canucks this season. He has bounced around the league, unable to find a true fit. He’s in the last year of his contract and is in a situation where he needs to prove his value if he wants an NHL job next year. The playoffs are the perfect place to do that.

Teddy Blueger, who’s also playing for his next contract, has proven his value well this season. He has been the perfect depth player for the Canucks and he’ll definitely get another deal next year. Blueger is one of the only Stanley Cup champions on the Canucks roster, having won it with the Vegas Golden Knights last year.

Blueger is all around more valuable than Beauvillier, so he gets the point.

Sam Lafferty: 79 GP, 13 G, 11 A, 24 P, +4

Michael McCarron: 70 GP, 12 G, 10 A, 22 P, +4

Michael McCarron and Sam Lafferty are both valuable assets to their teams. Both guys know their roles and stick to them. They both produce at bottom-six rates and neither guy is afraid to drop the gloves.

This one’s a draw.

Vasily Podkolzin: 19 GP, 0 G, 2 A, 2 P, -4

Cody Glass: 41 GP, 6 G, 7 A, 13 P, -9

Both Cody Glass and Vasily Podkolzin were top-10 picks in the NHL, but neither guy has found his game in the big league yet. Glass has dealt with injuries and healthy scratches all year, but still managed to put up 13 points. He needs to find his game if he’s going to stay in the NHL, and this playoff series could be the place to do it.

Podkolzin spent the majority of the season in the AHL, earning an NHL look in March. He’s managed to stay in the NHL since then, but hasn’t done much. He will likely get his first taste of playoff hockey during this series, but he will have to prove that he should stay in the lineup.

Glass gets the point here. He’s been much more consistent than Podkolzin.

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