Tuesday December 19 - Vancouver Canucks vs. Montreal Canadiens, 7 p.m., Sportsnet Pacific, Sportsnet 650
Montreal Canadiens: 33 GP, 14-15-4, 32 pts, fourth in Atlantic Division Vancouver Canucks: 34 GP, 15-15-4, 34 pts, sixth in Pacific Division
Whoa.
brock?
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) December 19, 2017
BROCK! pic.twitter.com/fai1dD3BNM
Spotted on crutches and in a walking boot less than 24 hours ago, Brock Boeser is back on the ice for Tuesday's morning skate ahead of the Vancouver Canucks' game against the Montreal Canadiens.
Boeser said he feels sore, will take pre-game skate tonight and is hoping to play.
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) December 19, 2017
I was happy just to hear that Boeser's foot wasn't broken on Monday. If he plays tonight, it really will be a Christmas miracle!
#Canucks Boeser looks remarkably nimble on ice which is pretty remarkable given the visuals Sunday night & the day of angst yesterday
— Jeff Paterson (@patersonjeff) December 19, 2017
We fret when we see an offensive talent like Boeser blocking shots, but those actions sure seem to go a long way in the eyes of the players. They see a team guy who doesn't just define himself by the number of points he puts on the board.
Del Zotto on Boeser: His commitment to blocking shots, as a teammate that goes a long way. That speaks a lot to his character and wanting to win #canucks
— TSN Radio Vancouver (@TSN1040) December 18, 2017
Brendan Gallagher expressed a similar sentiment when he chatted with Ben Kuzma of The Province after the Habs' practice on Monday.
“An unbelievable player and that (shot blocking) will go a long way with his teammates,… Gallagher told Kuzma. …I never really measure my success by goals, assists and points; there’s a lot that goes into it. You want to be accountable to your teammates and all the little things that help you win.…
Not only is Boeser the most exciting scorer to wear a Canucks uniform in many a moon, he keeps showing us the character of a player who's going to be known for playing the game "the right way," as they say.
Today's Boeser sighting overshadows the potential return of Erik Gudbranson, who's officially off injured reserve and back into the lineup tonight.
I speculated on Monday that Travis Green might choose to scratch Ben Hutton or Troy Stecher to make room for the big guy. Dan Murphy was thinking along similar lines.
If Gudbranson is back for #canucks tonight I don’t think Biega takes a seat. My guess is Hutton (or 51).
— Dan Murphy (@sportsnetmurph) December 19, 2017
So's Travis:
Gudbranson is in, Hutton is out, said Coach.
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) December 19, 2017
What would you have done?
Reid Boucher quickly went from being a virtual certainty to a total question mark for tonight's game—but it sounds like he could draw in:
"There's a chance we see Reid tonight," Coach Green said, when asked if Boucher is in. "I liked the work he put in over the summer. He's played well this year, played a competitive game. He's being aggressive."
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) December 19, 2017
Anders Nilsson was the first goalie off the ice at practice today, so expect to see him get the start after a strong performance in third period mop-up duty against Calgary on Sunday
As for the Canadiens, their blue line took a hit when it was announced on Monday that Shea Weber has been sent home from this road trip due to a lingering foot injury of his own.
Or something...
Yesterday Claude Julien said the #Habs were sending Weber back to Montreal, but he’s in Vancouver with a walking boot on left foot.
— Irfaan Gaffar (@sportsnetirf) December 19, 2017
Weber has missed seven games so far this season but had played in Montreal's last six games, including 22:58 in the Habs' 3-0 shutout loss to the Ottawa Senators in the outdoor game in Ottawa last Saturday.
After rattling off five straight wins when injured goaltender Carey Price first returned to the lineup in late November—capped off by the insane 10-1 win over the Detroit Red Wings on December 2—Montreal has since gone 1-3-1, scoring just nine goals in total over those five games.
Other Habs on the injured list are wingers Ales Hemsky and Artturi Lehkonen, as well as backup goaltender Al Montoya. Price is expected to make his 11th-straight start tonight.
Going into tonight's game, Montreal sits in fourth place in a weak Atlantic Division, but is five points back of third-place Boston. Even with no teams to jump over, SportsClubStats pegs the Habs' current playoff chances at just nine percent. By comparison, Vancouver is now four points out of the second wild-card in the Western Conference, but would need to leapfrog five rivals to get there. The Canucks are now 13th in the conference and their playoff odds are pegged at just 7.6 percent.
Unless something changes dramatically, we're going to be starved for Canadian teams in the playoffs this year. Right now, Toronto is the only Canadian team that's in good shape for the postseason.
To wrap up today—another World Junior note.
Team USA has cut its roster to 27 players today. Will Lockwood's still in the mix—but there are more cuts still to come...
USA Line combos:
— Mike Morreale (@mikemorrealeNHL) December 19, 2017
Bellows-Mittelstadt-Tufte
Tkachuk-Brown-Yamamoto
Harper-Poehling-J Anderson
Jones-Badini-Norris
Frederic-McGing-Lockwood
I feel much better saying this now: Enjoy the game!