Monday April 4 - Vancouver Canucks vs. Los Angeles Kings - 7 p.m. - Sportsnet Pacific, TSN1040
Vancouver Canucks: 78 GP, 29-36-13, 71 pts, sixth in Pacific Division
Los Angeles Kings: 78 GP, 46-27-5, 97 pts, second in Pacific Division
The Vancouver Canucks will attempt to win three straight games for the first time this season—and run the table against the playoff-bound California teams—when they play host to the Los Angeles Kings in their second-last home game of the year at Rogers Arena.
Vancouver has been trending in the wrong direction against L.A. this year, opening the season with a 3-0 shutout win, then dropping a 2-1 decision in overtime in early December before suffering through two blowout losses: 5-0 on December 28 in the Kings' only visit to date to Rogers Arena and 5-1 at the Staples Center on March 7.
We'll see more roster-juggling up front. The three players injured in San Jose and Anaheim last week aren't likely to see action tonight:
It's hoped that Derek Dorsett will be ready to return to game action. And we'll have Jake Virtanen back in the mix after his two-game suspension.
Iain MacIntyre reports in the
Vancouver Sun that Virtanen didn't exactly embrace captain Henrik Sedin's criticism of last week's hit on Roman Polak that earned Virtanen the suspension.
“I think it’s totally his choice,” Virtanen said, speaking for the first time since his suspension was issued Wednesday. “Obviously, you want your teammates to have your back in those situations. Every guy has their own opinion.”
Does he sound testy to you?
MacIntyre suggests that the constant advice that Virtanen and fellow rookie Jared McCann receive from their teammates and the coaching staff could feel overwhelming by this point in the season. Though Willie Desjardins also chose not to defend Virtanen when the suspension came down, he insists that the team is supporting the player:
“It’s a learning moment. It’s a teaching moment. It wasn’t that Hank wasn’t on his side. It’s not that Hank wouldn’t support him totally. But (Jake) can learn from that. I think that’s all Hank was trying to do. He wasn’t calling him out on it or anything; he was just trying to make sure (Jake) learned from the process and was accountable.”
Virtanen skated on a line with Mikael Granlund and Jared McCann at practice on Sunday.
It's expected that we'll see Andrey Pedan back at forward for another go-round tonight. It's not a bad thing to have his size, toughness and willingness to fight in the lineup against the heavy Kings team, and Willie Desjardins is suggesting that if Pedan can show enough versatility to be a spare part up front or on the blue line, that could help his chances of sticking with the team next season.
It didn't take Nikita Tryamkin long to grab Pedan's spot on the depth chart. I hope the not-quite-as-big Russian can find a way to fit himself into the team's plans next year, when he would need to be exposed to waivers if he was to be sent down to the minors.
Today's morning skate is an optional, as usual. Everything seems to be aligning as expected.
It'll be Ryan Miller's turn to start in goal.
The Canucks will enter tonight's game in 27th place overall after being leapfrogged by the Winnipeg Jets on Sunday. The Kings also got knocked down a notch, into second place in the Pacific, after the Anaheim Ducks beat Dallas 3-1.
I think L.A. would love to claim that division title and avoid a matchup with one of the California teams in the first round, so the Kings have plenty to play for tonight.
L.A. is coming into a pair of back-to-backs, also facing the Flames in Calgary on Tuesday, so it's not yet clear if or when they'll use backup Jhonas Enroth to spell off Jonathan Quick.
It wouldn't necessarily be to the Canucks' advantage to face Enroth. He hasn't seen much action this season but when he has played, he has been good. In 15 games, the 27-year-old Swede is 6-5-1 with a 2.03 goals-against average and a .928 save percentage.
The Kings' current injured list features three names, all of whom have been out for awhile. Matt Greene is dealing with a shoulder problem, Jordan Nolan has a back issue and Marian Gaborik has been out for about six weeks with a knee injury. Gaborik has started skating on his own, so he could be ready to get back into action shortly after the playoffs begin.
A couple of other quick notes from Rogers Arena today.
First, an Alex Edler sighting:
And second, a visit from three members of Team Canada's 1972 Summit Series crew, sharing stories and posing for pictures:
The Summit Series crew will be touching down in September in the four cities that hosted the Canadian games. The Vancouver date is set for Sept. 8 at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre.
Canadian Women Play for Gold
If tonight's Canucks game goes badly—or in between periods—flip over to TSN for the gold-medal game of the 2016 Women's World Championship, live from Kamloops. Since we're actually in the same time zone as the big event, it'll run in prime time for us, starting at 7:30 p.m. PT.
Canada had a bit of a bumpy ride, but hung on to eliminate Finland by a score of 5-3 in their semifinal, while Team USA destroyed Russia by a score of 9-0 in the other bracket. The U.S. prevailed by a score of 4-2 in Malmo, Sweden last year. Will the partisan home crowd help Canada grab gold tonight?
Vancouver Canucks Blogger • 
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