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Hughes & Pettersson make their Toronto debuts as the Canucks face the Leafs |
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Saturday February 29 - Vancouver Canucks at Toronto Maple Leafs - 4 p.m. - CBC, Sportsnet Pacific, Sportsnet 360, Sportsnet 650
Vancouver Canucks: 63 GP, 34-23-6, 74 pts, second in Pacific Division
Toronto Maple Leafs: 65 GP, 34-23-8, 76 pts, third in Atlantic Division
Travis Green is sticking with the same lineup on Saturday night as the Vancouver Canucks look to put their loss in Ottawa behind them with a win over the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Though the Leafs were stymied by emergency backup David Ayres and a very tight Carolina defense last Saturday, they remain the highest-scoring team in the NHL, averaging 3.51 goals per game. Even though Auston Matthews has already hit new career highs with 44 goals and 76 points and sits second in the Rocket Richard race, two goals behind David Pastrnak, Toronto's scoring is pretty much status quo. They scored an average of 3.49 goals last year — although that put them fourth in the league behind Tampa Bay, San Jose and Calgary.
Scoring is still up league-wide this year — now at an average of 3.04 goals per game after last year ended at 3.01. So if the top teams are actually scoring a bit less, those goals have to be distributed among the rest of the league — and one place they've gone is to Vancouver.
Vancouver sits ninth, at 3.27. That's pretty impressive now that we're into the home stretch, considering they finished in a tie for 25th last year, at 2.67.
Of course, the Leafs' defensive struggles have also been well documented. On that side of the puck, they're 27th in the league, allowing 3.26 goals per game. And with Morgan Rielly and Cody Ceci already on the injured list, Jake Muzzin became the third defensive regular to be sidelined when he suffered a broken hand on Tuesday, one day after inking a new contract extension worth $5.625 million a year, which will keep him in Toronto for the next four seasons.
Muzzin's 31, by the way, and was making $4 million a year on his previous five-year deal. He's a pretty good comparable for 30-year-old impending UFA Chris Tanev, who have been making $4.45 million a season for the last five years.
And — knock on wood — Tanev has played in every game so far this season; his career high is 70 games, in 2014-15.
He did miss some time on Thursday in Ottawa, after taking a puck to the side of the head, but returned to finish the game. Check out that ear!
This brings back memories for me of when he took that puck to the mouth in Toronto a few years back; his teeth have never been the same.
Here's how the Leafs' lines and D pairs rolled at Saturday's morning skate.
After losing to Carolina last Saturday, the Leafs headed for Florida, where they collected a 4-3 win over the Lightning on Tuesday and a 5-3 victory over the Panthers on Thursday. Freddie Andersen was in goal for both wins — and William Nylander had both game-winning goals. Looking much more like the player the Leafs thought they were getting when they inked him to that big contract last year, Nylander's now at a career-high 29 goals and, with 57 points, he's four points shy of his previous best.
As for the Canucks — Oscar Fantenberg and Tyler Myers had a rough night in Ottawa, but remain paired together against Toronto.
The pair were the common denominator on Ottawa's first three goals, which each came at full strength, against different lines.
Thatcher Demko gets the nod in net — perhaps the brightest spotlight he's played under in his NHL career?
He has never faced Toronto before, but has actually played more games against Atlantic Division opponents than any other division. His record is 5-2-0 in nine appearances — 1-1-0 against Florida and against Ottawa, after Thursday's loss, with wins against Buffalo, Detroit and Montreal.
It's also a big night for Quinn Hughes, who will play his first career NHL game in Toronto. He's no stranger to the city or the rink, having spent a good chunk of his youth there while his dad worked as the Leafs' director of player development between 2009 and 2015. And with the ice that always seems to flow in his veins, I don't expect any butterflies from him.
A big game in front of the Toronto media machine could go a long way toward sealing that Calder Trophy win, though. No pressure!
As Jeff Paterson points out, Saturday will also be the first opportunity for Toronto fans to see Elias Pettersson in the flesh.
Last season, he was at full phenom level when he got injured in Ottawa, one game before the Canucks met the Leafs.
Right now, he's flying under the radar a bit, with all the hype around Hughes, J.T. Miller and Tyler Toffoli — and the injury to Jacob Markstrom, which Elliotte Friedman called the biggest trade-deadline story among the Canadian teams in this week's "31 Thoughts" podcast.
As quiet as he has seemed, Pettersson has eight points in 11 games so far in February — and missed that one game after getting banged up in Boston. He's up to 60 points for the year — still close to a point a game and just six points off the 66 he tallied last season. But when Hughes and Miller have 15 points each this month, Petey's contribution is easy to overlook.
On the out-of-town scoreboard — Vegas won its eighth-straight game on Friday night, with Robin Lehner in goal for the first time. So the Golden Knights have now opened up a six-point cushion atop the Pacific Division.
The Canucks' 74 points tie them with the Oilers, who are hosting Winnipeg in Saturday's late game. The Flames are one point back at 73 and play in Tampa at 1 p.m. PT — against a Lightning team that has suddenly lost four in a row since its 11-game winning streak ended last week.
Nashville and Winnipeg hold down eighth and ninth in the Conference with 72 points; the Preds host Colorado at 4 p.m. and the Jets visit Winnipeg.
And Minnesota improved its record under new coach Dean Evason to 5-2-0 on Friday with a 5-0 shutout over Columbus. They've now caught the Central pack, with 71 points, but they're idle on Saturday. They'll host Washington on Sunday.
With that, you're up to date. Enjoy the game!
Vancouver Canucks Blogger • 
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