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Sutter & Beagle are out, Graovac in down the middle as Canucks host Stars |
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Thursday November 14 - Vancouver Canucks vs. Dallas Stars - 7 p.m. - Sportsnet Pacific, Sportsnet 650
Vancouver Canucks: 19 GP, 10-6-3, 23 pts, third in Pacific Division
Dallas Stars: 19 GP, 9-8-2, 20 pts, fifth in Pacific Division
The Vancouver Canucks took a day off on Wednesday after their emotional win over the Nashville Predators. Thursday's morning skate was expected to provide a level of clarity on how the team would go forward — possibly without injured centres Jay Beagle and Brandon Sutter.
There ended up being another wrinkle of intrigue on top of that:
Word is that Horvat will be able to play — although it doesn't sound like he's 100 percent. Still feeling the effects of his 27-minute night on Tuesday?
Here's how the lines rolled out while he was in the mix:
Here's the rest of the detail on the team's walking wounded. Brandon Sutter has been placed on IR, so he'll be unavailable for at least a week.
Now, here's a look at Thursday's opponent, the Dallas Stars.
You may have heard that Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin were called out by coach Jim Montgomery earlier this week?
Of course, this echoed the dressing down that Dallas' two top stars got from team president Jim Lites at the end of last year. This time, amends have quickly been made.
The drama overshadows the fact that the Stars are actually one of the hottest teams in the league right now, with an 8-1-1 record in their last 10 games following their rocky 1-7-1 start.
Yes, $9.5 million team captain Jamie Benn has just one goal and six points so far this season, and $9.85 million man Seguin has 11 points in 19 games in the first year of his eight-season contract extension. Overall, the Stars have been the third-lowest scoring team in the league so far this year, averaging just 2.42 goals per game. But they're also the second-best team defensively behind the New York Islanders, giving up 2.37. And while their one regulation loss in their recent stretch was a 3-0 shutout defeat at the hands of the Pittsburgh Penguins on October 26, their overall production since they started turning things around has been all right — 25 goals in the other nine games for an average of 2.78 goals per game, while giving up just one goal in seven of those contests, and never more than three.
Like last year, Ben Bishop plays a bit more often. But Anton Khudobin is just fine when he gets the net — which he's expected to do on Thursday after Bishop got the win in the Stars' 3-1 victory in Calgary on Wednesday. Khudobin was the goalie of record in Dallas' 3-2 overtime loss in Winnipeg last Sunday, but overall he has a 2.43 goals-against average and .915 save percentage this year — not far off his numbers from last season.
New Star Joe Pavelski scored twice in Wednesday's win over Calgary, giving him seven points in his last six games. The Stars are lacking some centre depth as well. Wednesday's game winner was the first ever in the NHL by 29-year-old Justin Dowling — an undrafted career minor-leaguer who has played just 34 NHL games in his career, but 14 of those have come with the Stars this season.
Another minor-league centre, Rhett Gardner, was also recalled by the Stars on Thursday. Dallas is dealing with an injury up front to Roope Hintz, who was the team's leading scorer with 11 points in 16 games when he suffered a lower-body injury that has him sidelined indefinitely. On the blue line, the Stars are also without John Klingberg and Roman Polak.
Here's how the lines rolled on Wednesday in Calgary:
After suffering a foot injury during training camp, Corey Perry joined the Stars lineup on October 16. He has just two goals and two assists in 12 games in a Dallas uniform so far, but played his 1,000th-career NHL game in Calgary on Wednesday, adding another layer to the festive vibe.
So, all things considered, the Stars are feeling pretty good about themselves as they roll into Vancouver.
One Canucks player who's probably happy to see the Stars is Tim Schaller. Last season, the Canucks took four of six points from Dallas, with two 3-2 shootout victories and a 2-1 loss at Rogers Arena. Of the five goals scored in regulation during the season series, Schaller scored three of them — his only three goals of last year.
This year, after scoring four goals in three games near the end of October, Schaller has since gone on an eight-game pointless streak. He'll once again without his regular linemate Jay Beagle against the Stars, but perhaps his past history against Dallas will help him get back on the scoresheet.
Elsewhere, don't forget that Thursday marks the final game of the CIBC Canada Russia series, as the Russians take on the WHL team in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. Wednesday's game in Saskatoon was only partially televised, and ended with a 2-1 overtime win for the WHL team thanks to goals from defensemen Bowen Byram and Calen Addison.
The Canucks had three prospects in the game — Vasily Podkolzin for Russia along with Carson Focht and Jett Woo for the WHL squad.
All three were held off the scoresheet. Focht was 10-for-21 in the faceoff circle while Woo took the first-period hooking penalty that led to Russia's only goal, scored by Maxim Sorkin. Podkolzin had three shots on goal, but took a hooking penalty late in the third, when the Russians were defending their 1-0 lead. That penalty was killed successfully, but Byram tied the game 14 seconds after Podkolzin got back on the ice, with just 22 seconds left to play in regulation.
With the late-game twist of fate, emotions could be high on both sides in the final game on Thursday.
Puck drop is at 5:30 PT, televised on Sportsnet 360.
Enjoy the game!
Vancouver Canucks Blogger • 
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