First off, the big news of the day. Goaltender Jacob Markstrom has indeed cleared waivers and will report to the Utica Comets.
Sixty-five percent of you who voted in yesterday's poll thought this was a solid course of action. I do think he's an asset that could still have some value. So does local goaltending expert Kevin Woodley, who writes for NHL.com and other outlets and has probably followed Markstrom's saga as closely as anybody:
This latest twist will have a ripple effect, of course. Joacim Ericsson and Joe Cannata handled the duties in Utica last season and did reasonably well, but if Markstrom joins the team, that tandem will be rattled.
Pass It To Bulis also notes that Ericsson has a clause in his contract that would allow him to return to Sweden if he's unhappy with his situation in the Canucks organization.
Given that he didn't bolt after being hung out to dry in that awful 9-1 loss to Anaheim last January, he must have some degree of patience.
Though the final fallout for Markstrom, Ericsson and Cannata has yet to be determined, the good news is that Vancouver's starting tandem has been rock-solid so far in preseason.
We knew that Jim Benning had confidence in Ryan Miller, but I found it interesting that he made the move with Markstrom before Miller had even played his first game as a Canuck.
For now, no worries. Miller stopped all seven shots he faced in his debut on Friday night, so both he and Eddie Lack now have perfect records so far in preseason.
Playing their third game in three nights, the Calgary Flames didn't exactly bring an NHL-caliber roster to Vancouver on Friday, so I'm not going to get too excited about Miller's first game. He made a nice stop off of shifty Sam Bennett in the first minute of the game, but didn't even face a shot in the second period before he made way for Ericsson at the 10:22 mark.
Still, I can't complain. With our newer, deeper team, we may have to get used to the fact that players we've been taught to value might not be as crucial to our team's success going forward.
Which brings me to the kids. Nick Jensen and Bo Horvat were both held off the scoresheet on Friday, but along with Hunter Shinkaruk, the trio are all making a case for inclusion in the Canucks' opening-night roster.
Horvat might get a chance to improve his prospects over the next week if Brad Richardson's injury keeps him out of the lineup for any period of time. There's no update yet on his condition, but Richardson left Friday's game six minutes into the second period after taking a hit from Brandon Bollig and did not return.
I like Richardson very much as a bottom-six forward. He's decent in the circle, has good wheels and is a very effective penalty-killer who brings some energy to the lineup. But if he's unavailable for this last week of preseason, that provides a golden opportunity for Horvat to get some quality ice time in the middle and show what he can do as a two-way player who wouldn't have to be deployed in a top-six situation.
After Friday's game, the Canucks cut the preseason roster by another 11 players.
We already knew that Jake Virtanen was headed to his junior club, the Calgary Hitmen. The other 10 are all headed to Utica—eight Canucks prospects as well as tryout players J.T. Wyman and Carter Bancks, who were officially released and will now be trying out for the Comets.
The other eight players sent down were defensemen Henrik Tommernes, Kent Huskins, John Negrin and Kane Lafranchise as well as forwards Alex Friesen, Brendan Gaunce and Ronalds Kenins and goaltender Joe Cannata.
I was a little bit surprised to see Gaunce in this group, but he has been overshadowed by the team's other top prospects and said last week that he was prepared to start the season in the AHL and try to work his way up. The 2012 first-rounder is still just 20 years old, so this will be his first taste of pro action above the junior level.
The other big news from Friday night is the Canucks' first power-play goals of preseason—THREE of them. I don't think we got three power-play goals in a month during stretches of last season. Once again, the new faces carried their share of the weight: Linden Vey, Jannik Hansen and Radim Vrbata got the goals, with setups from the twins all round.
Henrik was named first star on the strength of his three assists.
If, like me, you weren't able to catch Friday's game, here are the highlights:
It was nice of the Flames to give up seven power play opportunities over the course of the game, and probably didn't hurt that Kris Russell was the most experienced blueliner in the Flames roster. I won't assume that the power-play problems are instantly solved, but it was nice to see the team heading in the right direction, especially with the presumed quarterback, Alex Edler, still out of the lineup.
Overall, I guess I'd call it a satisfying night. The team appears to be trending in the right direction, with plenty of work still to do before the Canucks and Flames meet for real on opening night, October 8.
Vancouver Canucks Blogger • 
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