Canucks Struggle In The Defensive Zone, Fall 6-2 To The Lightning

The Vancouver Canucks picked up their 39th loss of the season as they fell 6-2 to the Tampa Bay Lightning. Vancouver received goals from two of their Swedish forwards as Liam Öhgren and Linus Karlsson found the back of the net. As for Kevin Lankinen, he stopped 24 of the 30 shots he faced in the loss.

Thursday night was a good example of how far away the Canucks currently are from some of the league’s best. The Lightning controlled the game all night and demonstrated why they are a favourite in the Eastern Conference. While it was only a one-goal game after the first, it was no surprise that Tampa Bay skated away with a victory.

“A team that we inspire to be, said Jake DeBrusk post-game when asked about the Lightning. “They play together always. I remember playing against them, even playing playoffs against them, but obviously got some different guys now. But yeah, they play as a group. And, you know, they have the results for a reason. And you know, like I said, that’s something that we need to get to.”

One of Vancouver’s main issues in this game was protecting the front of the net. Tampa generated plenty of traffic in front of Lankinen, resulting in three goals scored from just outside the crease. Post-game, Head Coach Adam Foote spoke about the defensive issues that plagued his team on Thursday.

“Yeah. I mean, if he gets there, you can’t be double-screen,” said Foote. “We talked about that every day. And sometimes you lose your positioning, or where you are. I mean, you know, the one screen, the guy gets there, it could be from out of the corner. We talked about extending coverage. We didn’t extend. They move the puck, you get beat to the net. So it’s a fly-by screen, so things like that. It’s just they take advantage of that. That’s what NHL players do. They take advantage of little things like that. And, you know, we’ve got to learn from that quickly and hold our ground. And you know, these mistakes have to stop. You know, I call it extended coverage. One, two, three, you’re not getting easy ice. We called the timeout because it looked like we kind of got a little bit rattled. I think the one where Kucherov called the reverse, and we got hemmed in our end instead of moving it forward. You don’t want to bring it back against a savvy team like that, a veteran team. But also with Kucherov on the ice, you want to make sure you’re playing North.”

Mar 19, 2026; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Vancouver Canucks goalie Kevin Lankinen (32) reacts as Tampa Bay Lightning forward Anthony Cirelli (71) celebrates his goal in the third period at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Frid-Imagn Images

In the end, Thursday’s loss goes into the learn and move category. The only real takeaway was that the Canucks have a long way to go before they are competitive again. Thursday was also a reminder of how good Nikita Kucherov is, as his three-point night puts him at 114 points on the season.

Stats and Facts:

– Brock Boeser ties Tony Tanti for ninth all-time in franchise history for points

– Jake DeBrusk led the team with five shots on goal

– Filip Hronek led all players in ice time at 23:55

– Aatu Räty led all players in hits with six

Scoring Summary:

1st Period:

17:37- TBL: Jake Guentzel (30) from Charle-Edouard D’Astous and Ryan McDonagh

2nd Period:

00:49- TBL: Darren Raddysh (18) from Nikita Kucherov and Anthony Cirelli
4:16- TBL: Yanni Gourde (9) from Darren Raddysh and Pontus Holmberg
5:31- TBL: Nikita Kucherov (38) from Erik Cernak and Anthony Cirelli
12:06- VAN: Liam Öhgren (7) from Brock Boeser and Marco Rossi

3rd Period:

7:04- VAN: Linus Karlsson (13) from Marco Rossi
7:35- TBL: Anthony Cirelli (17) from Brandon Hagel and Erik Cernak

Up Next:

The Canucks continue their homestand on Saturday when the St. Louis Blues visit Rogers Arena. These two teams have already played twice this year, with each picking up a road win. Game time is scheduled for 4:00 pm PT.

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