Canucks Resume Play After 4 Nations Face-Off With A 3–1 Loss To Vegas

The Vancouver Canucks resumed their regular season with a 3–1 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights in the first of a back-to-back. Jake DeBrusk (VAN), Ivan Barbashev (VGK), Brandon Saad (VGK), and Tomáš Hertl (VGK) scored tonight. Kevin Lankinen started the game for Vancouver, making 32 saves on 34 shots against.

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Tonight was the fifth game in a row that Canucks captain Quinn Hughes has sat out of due to injury. In his absence, FIlip Hronek acted as the team’s top minute-muncher, playing almost half of the entire first period and clocking a team-leading 27:32 minutes by the end of the game. He also took Hughes’ role on the power play, but ultimately did not register any points.

Despite reports of an ailment, Elias Pettersson played in this game. He registered one shot and one hit in 15:59 minutes played. He had the fifth-highest time on ice tonight of all Canucks forwards.

Vancouver started the game swimming around in their own zone, though neither team looked overly cohesive. Passes weren’t connecting, and plays weren’t set up properly before being broken up. The biggest indicator of the Canucks’ disorganization, however, were the two too-many-men penalties called on them less than four minutes into the game, and halfway through the first period. They also took a delay of game penalty for launching the puck over the glass. Vancouver didn’t register their first shot of the game until around eight minutes into the game.

Playing in his first game since signing his new five-year, $4.5M AAV contract, Lankinen did what he does best and put up yet another steady performance. He made a handful of glove saves in the first period, a breakaway save during the third, and finished the game with a .941 SV%. The minimal goal differential was largely in part due to Lankinen’s heroics throughout the game.

DeBrusk opened the scoring for the Canucks in the second period, scoring his 20th goal of the season and his 300th career NHL point. Last season, he scored 19 goals in 80 games with the Boston Bruins. The play was quickly followed up by a Canucks power play, which was drawn by Elias Pettersson (D) after he was hooked by Barbashev. The Vegas forward got his revenge by tying the game up less than five minutes later.

Hits were a big subject of the game, as Vancouver virtually lapped Vegas in this stat multiple times. By the end of the second period, the Canucks had 23 to the Golden Knights’ eight. Kiefer Sherwood had six in the same span of time, tallying his 300th on the season during it. Sherwood finished the game with nine hits, while the Canucks put up 34 to Vegas’s 10.

Saad scored the go-ahead goal only 17 seconds into the third period. Vancouver almost tied it when Nils Höglander threw the puck into the blue paint and it bounced into the net, but it was called back due to Teddy Blueger being in the crease. This was not the last time Vancouver had a goal called off, however, as during a power play with less than five minutes to go in the period, the Canucks tucked the puck into the net beneath Adin Hill’s pads after the whistle was blown.

Despite a wide shot margin to start the third, with Vegas nearly doubling Vancouver’s, the Canucks managed to come back and almost match the Golden Knights in shots with 33 to Vegas’s 35. Still, this was not enough to get the team a win, as they ultimately fell 3–1 to start the road trip.

Stats and Facts: 

• Jake DeBrusk notches his 300th career NHL point off his 20th goal of the season, making him the 17th member of the 2015 NHL Draft class to hit this milestone

• Kiefer Sherwood notches 300 hits on the season, making him the first to do so in 52 games

• Canucks make 30 hits in one game for the 19th time this season

Scoring Summary: 

1st Period: 

No goals.

2nd Period: 

6:22 – VAN: Jake DeBrusk (20) from Kiefer Sherwood and Carson Soucy

11:02 – VGK: Ivan Barbashev (16) from Victor Olofsson and Kaedan Korczak

3rd Period: 

0:17 – VGK: Brandon Saad (9) from Zach Whitecloud and Brett Howden

19:29 – VGK: Tomáš Hertl (22) from Brett Howden and Nicolas Roy

Up Next: 

Fans won’t have to wait very long to catch the Canucks in action next, as they play Utah Hockey Club tomorrow night. This will be the second half of the team’s first back-to-back on this road trip, with Vancouver also playing next Wednesday and Thursday in California. Puck drop for tomorrow’s game is set for 5:00 pm PT.

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