Monday November 16 - Montreal Canadiens 4 - Vancouver Canucks 3 (OT)
Well, that was depressing. The Vancouver Canucks brought back memories of their season-ending playoff loss against the Calgary Flames last spring when they let a 3-0 lead evaporate against the Montreal Canadiens and ultimately dropped their sixth game of the year in 3-on-3 overtime.
Here are your highlights:
There was lots to like in the first half of the game. Adam Cracknell scored a greasy goal on the first offensive foray of the game, just 1:26 in. The goal was his third of the year, which ties his career high from his rookie season in St. Louis back in 2010-11.
And the power play went 2-for-6. That's three straight games where the Canucks have clicked with the man advantage, which has them back in the league's top 20 with a 17.5 percent success rate—an improvement from last week. Jared McCann got an impressive 3:02 of power-play time last night and picked up his sixth goal of the season with Brendan Gallagher off for a nasty high-stick on Daniel Sedin late in the first period.
Speaking of that play—how freaking tough was Daniel, getting cleaned up on the bench after taking that stick to the face and joining the power play just 34 seconds after Gallagher was sent off?
He might have started the power play, except the equipment manager needed to find him a fresh jersey to replace the one with the bloodstains.
Daniel went on to pick up what looked like the game-clinching goal on another power play early in the second—a shot so slick, he was the only person who knew he'd managed to stick it under a piece of cloth inside the net.
The Situation Room couldn't find a reason to will this one away.
The game began to unravel at the 8:40 mark of the second, when the Canucks gave up their fourth shorthanded goal in the last seven games, tying them with New Jersey and Arizona for the most in the league. That really takes the glow off of finally managing a perfect penalty kill for the first time in those same seven games, where they've given up eight power-play goals against.
Yannick Weber does get cross-checked by Eller to start the counterattack.
Are we surprised that there was no call, especially with Montreal already shorthanded?
With 11:20 to play in the 2nd, Eller puts the Canadiens on the board. #Canucks lead 3-1 and 15-14 in shots.
The Canucks outshot Montreal 11-9 in the first period, so shots had been 6-4 Montreal to that point in the second.
At the end of the second, Montreal had a 15-7 shot advantage, then went 8-6 in the third and 4-2 in overtime. Did the Habs smell blood, or did the Canucks start sitting back and preparing for the worst—again?
I was relieved that the team managed so squeak out of regulation with its first point in three games, and I tried to draw confidence from the fact that Jacob Markstrom had some past experience with 3-on-3 overtime from his time in the AHL last season. I was just hoping they could get to the shootout.
The Canucks managed to hang on for what seemed like the longest 3:25 in history, and Willie managed to get a McCann-Hansen-Bartkowski combo out for one shift, which I thought was a step in the right direction. And while I don't love the Sedins in this setting, they held their own this time around.
It was Vrbata-Higgins-Hutton who ended up being the goats after a Higgins shot missed the net and bounced off the end boards, allowing Montreal to quickly turn the play back up ice.
It's an understatement to say that overtime remains a work in progress.
In 6 O/T losses, #Canucks have been outshot 16-8. Daniel 3 shots. Vrbata & McCann only other forwards with a shot on goal
From here, there's a chance that circumstances might improve a little bit.
The Canucks are headed to Winnipeg, where the Jets find themselves on a league-high five-game losing streak after dropping a 3-2 decision to St. Louis on Monday night. The Jets have just three points in the month of November so far, compared to a lofty six for the Canucks.
The Jets also have the misfortune of playing in the Central Division, which means their 18 points put them in sixth place. The Canucks are two points better at 20, and that's enough to keep them second in the Pacific for now—though the Sharks are on a two-game winning streak and could catch up today with a win in Boston.
The Canucks are expected to have Luca Sbisa back in the lineup on Wednesday. He'll bring some much-needed physical presence against the banging Jets group. And I'd imagine that Alex Burrows will also be back.
Congratulations to the Burrows family on the birth of their baby boy, Jacob!
Still no word on when Brandon Sutter will be able to return. I'm sure Bo Horvat will be very happy to see him when he's back and can help share some of the workload in the heavy-lifting situations. I haven't piled onto Bo for his recent play—I think he's being asked to carry a very heavy workload and is doing his best under the circumstances.
Though Jacob Markstrom took the loss on Monday, I thought he played well. The errors that led to the Montreal goals came well outside his area of responsibility.
I'm sure he'll get one game of the back-to-backs coming up in Vancouver this weekend against Chicago and New Jersey. I wonder if Willie would consider starting him in Winnipeg on Wednesday as well?
To wrap today—once again, when things look grim for the big club, there's sunshine in the world of the prospects.
After a 5 point weekend - #Canucks prospect Brock Boeser was named NCHC Rookie of the week (2nd time already) - https://t.co/fhSYBvOJWy
Thatcher Demko has given up 10 goals in his first 10 games of the year and boasts a 9-1 record and .962 save percentage with the Boston College Eagles, including SIX shutouts.
Finally, since the Canucks have been out east, they've attracted a bit more attention than usual from Eastern reporters. Elliotte Friedman devotes points 16 through 19 of his 30 Thoughts this week to Canuck content.
Your favourite part will probably be this quote about the big Russian bear, Nikita Tryamkin:
GM Jim Benning has a good eye, too. In 2014, he grabbed Russian defenceman Nikita Tryamkin 66th overall. “I was like, ‘Who?’” one North American-based scout laughed last week. “Now, I’ve seen him. He’s going to be a player.”
We have heard that Tryamkin is planning to stay in the KHL for the foreseeable future, but these things can change. In terms of need, a hulking defenseman would certainly be a nice addition to the Canucks' prospect pool.
Vancouver Canucks Blogger • 
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