It felt like this game had been building: the Canucks playing good-not-great hockey and coming out on the winning side. Last night the Canucks played good-not-great hockey and came out with an OT loss. A point is a point, and they fought back from two two-goal deficits on the night, which isn’t a place they’re normally in. Here are your highlights if you missed the game:
The proverbial Swiss Swiss Army knife Pius Suter netted himself a hattrick on the night to claw back a point in a game in which the Canucks dominated the shots, but found themselves playing a hot goalie and a stifling team. Sometimes that’s the way cookie crumbles. With the Lotto line playing sub-par the past few days, it was Suter who got pushed up to the top line… and he delivered.
“I was obviously happy with that,” Suter said after the game about his three goal effort. “We rallied back from being down two goals twice. Obviously, couldn’t finish (the win). Kind of disappointing.
“Obviously, you know, you’re on a line that’s supposed to score. In the end, you’re just trying to play your game, win those 50/50 battles, get to the net. Sometimes they go in like today, and then other times you hit the post or something.”
This man plays center, wing, lines 1 through 4, PK and PP, and now he’s net himself a hattrick. He’s been a great pickup this past offseason, and he fits perfectly into the team. After bouncing around Chicago and Detroit the past few seasons, this is his first real shot at the playoffs. He’s excited for it, and the boys are a fan of him.
“I talk about it for me all the time — just predictability,” Miller said of Suter. “He’s a guy that’s very easy to play with. He’s a guy that can hop in anywhere, very versatile. On good teams, you always have guys like him. He doesn’t complain a day in his life. He just fills in where they tell him to go, and he’s playing every single position. Like I said, he’s fun to play with. Every faceoff play he goes to the net. Sometimes pucks just bounce onto your stick and he’s got enough skill to put them away.”
Coming out without two points wasn’t the aim, but the Canucks showed persistence in their comeback bid, scoring three goals in the third period. I think Tocchet would, overall, like the battle they showed.
“Overall I liked the battle,” Tocchet said after the game.
Yup, there we go.
One thing Tocchet did not like was Petey (and also Kuzy and Zadorov).
“I haven’t liked his game the last three or four games,” Tocchet said of Pettersson. “We’ve got to get him going. I think he’s got to skate. He’s got to start skating a little bit. I think he’s good with the moves sometimes, but I think when you have speed and make those moves, that’s when he’s at his best. We’ll get him going.”
How they get him going, who knows. Maybe he is just drained a little, and the upcoming All Star break will be a good reset. But Petey is known to be intensely focused and tough on himself, so I’m sure he knows how well he has and hasn’t been playing. For someone of his caliber, it won’t be too long. Maybe he’ll even have a new winger (or center?) after the break.
The Canucks’ last game before the All Star week is on Saturday against the CBJ. Hopefully they bare down for one more game before they relax and recoup.
Vancouver Canucks Blogger • 
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