Thursday January 21 - Vancouver Canucks at Boston Bruins - 4:00 p.m. - Sportsnet 360 - TSN1040
Vancouver Canucks: 47 GP, 19-17-11, 49 pts, fourth in Pacific Division
Boston Bruins: 45 GP, 24-16-5, 53 pts, fourth in Atlantic Division
It has been a couple of weeks since the Vancouver Canucks added a new face from Utica to their lineup so, in keeping with this season's tradition, Mike Zalewski will make his season debut when the Canucks visit Boston on Thursday night for Game 5 of their six-game road trip.
Zalewski was signed to an AHL contract by the Comets this season, so he wasn't technically Canucks property this year—until yesterday. The organization inked him to a two-way NHL deal that will extend for the rest of the season. It's for the league minimum of $575,000 at the NHL level, but
General Fanger reports that the deal carries a $125,000 guarantee. That's probably a nice boost compared to what he was earning on his AHL-only deal.
Zalewski's in at centre on the fourth line tonight, with Derek Dorsett and Jake Virtanen on his wings. Brandon Prust and Adam Cracknell have apparently been banished to the woodshed for all eternity after being on the ice for the tying third-period goal by the New York Rangers on Tuesday night.
Zalewski was originally brought into the Canucks organization by Mike Gillis in March of 2014, after he completed two years at RPI. The 6'2", 205-pound left winger saw two games of NHL action at the very end of the Torts era, picking up one assist.
This year, Zalewski has been playing center in Utica, where he's tied with Alex Friesen for fifth in team scoring with 8-9-17. He'll bring better size to the lineup tonight than the 5'9" Friesen would, though it's interesting to note that it's Friesen who leads the entire Comets team with 53 penalty minutes. Zalewski has just 16.
The Canucks have enjoyed surprisingly good results on this road trip so far, considering how dramatically they've been outplayed. I'm pleased to see the team making some adjustments that might have a positive impact on the team's defensive play. No pressure, rookie!
One other adjustment, which makes me happy. After two busy nights for Ryan Miller, Jacob Markstrom is getting the start against the Bruins.
Here's how the lines shook out at today's morning skate:
Is this the end of the road for Brandon Prust in Vancouver?
Daniel Wagner does an excellent job of summing up everything that has been said and done around Prust this week in his
Vancouver Courier article today.
Given how many injuries this team has absorbed this season, he may still be called back into duty—especially if the organization wants to stick to its plan of rotating Jake Virtanen in and out of the lineup. But a good showing from Zalewski tonight—and more points for the Canucks—might keep him around until at least the All-Star Break.
I wonder if Zalewski's recall means that the Canucks are expecting that Henrik Sedin might be out for more than 10 days or so and are looking for a longer-term solution than Jared McCann in the top-line center spot? That's the role Zalewski has been playing in Utica since Linden Vey was called up a month ago.
One thing I'll say for this year's Canucks—they never leave us short of talking points! I'm very interested to see how these new wrinkles play out on the ice tonight.
Of course, a visit to Boston is also a homecoming of sorts for Jim Benning, who spent eight years as part of the Bruins' management group before joining the Canucks, and for Matt Bartkowski, who was a Bruin for parts of five seasons.
Alex Biega also has strong ties to the Boston area thanks to his time spent playing hockey at Harvard with his brothers.
His wife is also a native of the area—he met her while he was at school and she has travelled back from Vancouver for tonight's game.
In the article MacIntyre mentions that Trevor Linden has said that it's an organizational priority to get Biega re-signed. He's currently on a two-way deal that pays him $600,000 at the NHL level, with $375,000 guaranteed according to General Fanager.
If the chips fall just right, the Canucks could move into third place in the Pacific Division tonight. Vancouver, San Jose and Arizona all have 49 points but the Sharks and Coyotes are playing each other, so one of those teams will definitely get two points and stay ahead. Fingers crossed for a regulation win!
As for the Bruins, they're one point behind both Detroit and Tampa Bay in the Atlantic Division, who are both idle tonight. A win would put Boston into second place in their division—and extend their current streak to four games.
Just over a month ago, the Bruins shut out the Canucks 4-0 at Rogers Arena, so Vancouver will be looking to return the favour in front of an always-hostile Boston crowd tonight. The Bruins are rolling offensively—now second in the Eastern Conference behind Washington in scoring—and also boast the NHL's second-best power play, so the Canucks will need to tighten up defensively if they want to leave Beantown with a point or two tonight.
One final Boston-related note to wrap up today. Boston College goaltender and Canucks prospect Thatcher Demko is on the shortlist of nominees for the Hobey Baker Award, given to the top NCAA hockey player each year.
Enjoy the game!
Vancouver Canucks Blogger • 
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