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Alex Edler returns as the Vancouver Canucks' road trip continues vs. Flyers

November 25, 2019, 1:52 PM ET [275 Comments]
Carol Schram
Vancouver Canucks Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
Monday November 25 - Vancouver Canucks at Philadelphia Flyers - 4 p.m. - Sportsnet Pacific, Sportsnet 650

Vancouver Canucks: 24 GP, 12-8-4, 28 pts, third in Pacific Division
Philadelphia Flyers: 23 GP, 11-7-5, 27 pts, fifth in Metropolitan Division

Alex Edler is back on the ice and skating in his regular defensive pairing as the Vancouver Canucks prepare to face the Philadelphia Flyers on Monday at Wells Fargo Center.



I'm almost afraid to bring this up: we're nearly a third of the way through the season, and even though there have been some injury scares on the blue line, Quinn Hughes has been the only member of the top six to miss a full game so far — and even that was just one game.

At this point last season, Erik Gubranson was the only blueliner who had appeared in all 26 of Vancouver's games. Troy Stecher and Derrick Pouliot had each played 25, Ben Hutton had played 24, Chris Tanev had played 21, Michael Del Zotto had played 18, Alex Edler had played 11 and Alex Biega had played six.

Now that the Canucks seem to have worked themselves out of their November swoon, I would suggest that the stability the team has had on the back end so far this season has been an important part of the team's success — especially having a healthy Alex Edler and Chris Tanev.

Speaking of Tanev, I finally got around to reading The Hockey News' cover story on the Hughes Brothers from a couple of months ago. Ken Campbell interviewed the brothers in July, when they were working out in Toronto. I loved this anecdote about the quick bond that Quinn established with Tanev:

When Quinn arrived in Vancouver, he still had an ankle injury and the two of them worked out and spent downtime together in their walking casts. "He's so chilll," said Quinn of Tanev. "We'd just go sit on the couch and he won't say anything for, like, 30 minutes. And I'm good with that. If I'm watching a movie, I don't want any talking, you know?"


One defenseman in the organization whose status is still unknown is Olli Juolevi, who left the Utica Comets a week ago to get an assessment from the doctors in Vancouver.

Rick Dhaliwal reports in The Ahtletic this morning that "There’s still no word on what’s wrong."

Dhaliwal spoke to Juolevi's agent, who says they're hoping to get more information soon. He also spoke with Juolevi's former coach, Sami Salo, who advised against being too quick to write off the former first-rounder.

"I talked with Utica GM Ryan Johnson recently and he was happy with his play,” Salo told Dhaliwal. “The book is not closed on Olli. You just don’t write people off. Look at me and my injuries — I went through a lot.”

Also on the topic of former Canucks blueliners, Kevin Bieksa made a good impression when he sat on the panel at Hockey Night in Canada two weeks ago. Bieksa was non-committal with Dhaliwal about a full-time future in broadcasting, but did say that he's in the process of starting a podcast with Ryan Kesler — which seems like it would be a worthwhile listen in the crowded hockey-podcast space.

While Bieksa and his family have stayed in Orange County since he hung up his skates, he also said, "I would consider any offer from the Canucks. I have spoken with Travis Green here in California at the rink a few times and still keep in touch with (Nolan) Baumgartner, (Manny) Maholtra and Ryan Johnson. I would not rule anything out."

Now — on to the forwards.

Jay Beagle is not skating with the Canucks on Monday in Philly. Brandon Sutter is, but is not taking part in line rushes. It has now been nearly two weeks since he left the Canucks' game against Nashville on November 12.



Also — Antoine Roussel is inching closer to making his season debut.



After splitting their back-to-back road games against the Laval Rocket over the weekend, the Comets will be back at home against Syracuse on Wednesday before heading up to Toronto for a pair of games against the Marlies on Saturday and Sunday.

Travis Green also reported that Micheal Ferland is on his way to rejoining the team after missing all of November so far with his concussion, and that Thatcher Demko will draw in tonight after two outstanding outings from Jacob Markstrom.



As for the Flyers: they're holding down the second wild-card spot in the East heading into Monday's action. That has to be considered a successful start for turnaround artist Alain Vigneault.

That being said, their recent record is a bit of a mixed bag. They have just one win in their last six games, against Carolina, but three of their five losses during that stretch have come in the shootout.

With just one goal so far this season, Shayne Gostisbehere was healthy-scratched in the Flyers' 3-2 shootout loss to Calgary last Saturday. He'll remain out of the lineup tonight, as Vigneault sticks with the group he used against the Flames.



While Carter Hart and Brian Elliott have been alternating in net in recent games, Hart will get his second-straight start on Monday against Vancouver after a strong outing in the Canucks' shootout win over the Flyers back in Vancouver on October 12. Hart also logged an impressive 2-1 win on home ice against Vancouver last February.

To close today — an interesting pair of comments between J.T. Miller and Alain Vigneault, who coached him with the New York Rangers when he first broke into the league.



Thanks, AV.

Enjoy the game!
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