By james art The Canucks seem to be finding their footing after a bumpy start that has some people on edge. With a bit of line juggling and placement adjustments, the guys look more like their old selves. It was a solid 6-3 win against the Hawks – beating teams you have to beat is a good thing. If you missed the game, here are the highlights:
The Canucks put forth their best offensive effort of the year, which was a joy to watch. Two goals by Heinen on an advanced third line and one each by Miller, Garland, Boeser and Suter completed the scoring. The Canucks have been creative and at times dominant up front as their summer signings seem to find better spots in the lineup. Credit to Tocchet for moving people around to find the right fit – it’s a bit hard to integrate 8 new players. The Heinen-Blueger-Sherwood line looked really solid, and having Garland and Hoglander playing Petey is starting to carry some weight. I’m happy that local boy Heinen managed to win a pair and he seems pleased with the team’s effort.
“Good forechecking from my teammates and good holding there at the point. Two great plays and I was lucky to have an empty net to go in,” Heinen said. “It makes you go a little bit and we were just trying to keep it simple, get pucks deep and drive the cycle and not get too fancy.
“We knew if we could try to get a full 60 (minutes) or at least get as close as possible and keep building, we could finish the trip right.”
Tocc was happy with the game for the most part…
“I like the fact that we scored six goals and it’s nice to get offense through the depth of the squad and the strong play, so overall I’m happy with the game,” he said. “But (protecting) the interior of the ice is something we’re not as good at as we were last year.
“We have to figure this out. Too many opportunities in the middle of the ice. The (Teddy) Blueger line was in good spots and playing close together. And for the most part, the guys stayed in it. I thought it was (Erik) Brannstrom’s best game. He distributed the puck well and I was happy with his breakouts.”
Yes, in the front, everything is fine. In the back end, it’s still missing. Hronek looked more dynamic last night, which is great. Hughes somehow seems to have found another level in his game. He’s downright dominant right now. Which is generally a great thing for the Canucks, why wouldn’t you want one of the best (if not THE best) defenseman on your team? The problem for the Canucks is everything after the Hughes-Hronek combination. As Drance noted in the first 40 minutes:
The Canucks found their game defensively in the 2nd, but minutes outside of Hughes remain an issue for this hockey club.
With Hughes at 5-on-5, the shooting is 11-4 and VAN outscored CHI 3-0.
In all remaining minutes, the number of shots is 7-16 in favor of Chicago + CHI is outscoring VAN 2-0.
That’s not a great recipe for winning the stretch.
Fortunately, Lankinen has now stepped up and is delivering the goods. He has looked solid in all his starts and gives confidence to the team. For only coming in the preseason, that’s not bad.
“Every start he’s had has been really good,” Tocchet praised. “I didn’t know much about him but he seems confident and likes our system, but we’re not quite there yet. We give up too much. He’s just a cool guy.
“I’m trying to enjoy it as much as I can,” Lankinen told Sportsnet late Tuesday. “But at the same time, I try to stay present. I’ve put in so much work, not just this summer but over the last few years, to prepare myself for the opportunity to play more games and prove to myself and everyone else that I can be an elite goaltender in this league. I think just the preparation and the hard work – and the mental work – helps me with this opportunity that I’ve had here the last few weeks. So I’m just trying to keep my foot on the gas and help the team win.
“Obviously the NHL is the best league in the world and it’s never easy to win a game, so you have to enjoy those moments because those are the ones that fuel your passion, fuel your motivation. But at the same time, you’re never satisfied because there’s always more.”
The win moves the Canucks to 3-1-2 on the season as they have won a possible 8 of 12 points. With four of those games coming on the road, it’s not too shabby of a start.
The boys have the next three at home, starting with Pittsburgh on Saturday. Until then, you have the comments:
Quotes from The Province and Sportsnet.