Thursday February 25 - Vancouver Canucks 5 - Ottawa Senators 3
For the first time all year, the Vancouver Canucks have scored five goals in consecutive games! Matt Bartkowski and Emerson Etem led the way with two goals each as the Canucks beat the Ottawa Senators on Thursday night at Rogers Arena.
Here are your highlights:
The win bumps the Canucks up one spot in the standings, to 23rd overall. They now rank above the Arizona Coyotes—both teams have 60 points but the Canucks have a game in hand. If that evens out, though, the Canucks would still rank lower because they have just 20 regulation/overtime wins—only Toronto and Edmonton have less.
Still, Thursday's game carried enough entertainment value to put the dreams of winning the draft lottery on hold for a few hours. Not only did the Canucks score five goals, they did it without picking up a point from their top line, and every single skater on the roster had at least one shot on goal except for Luca Sbisa. Overall, the Canucks outshot their opponents 36-30—the first time in eight games that they've held the edge in shots.
When you bring two of the league's loosest defensive teams together, you get plenty of mistakes on both sides, which lead to odd-man rushes and scoring opportunities. That's fun to watch.
It was also fun to see Markus Granlund make an immediate impact, helping to set up Emerson Etem on his second shift to give the Canucks an early 1-0 lead—and ignite a flurry of controversy about the merits of Frank Sinatra's "Come Fly With Me" as Etem's goal song.
I like it. It's unique and recognizable and if it gets played often enough, I think fans will come to embrace it. The generic feel of a lot of the EDM and hip-hop tracks that are being used aren't distinctive enough for my taste—and don't stand out that much from the other music that's played in the arena. When Etem scores, you'll know it's him!
Granlund goes to the net and makes the players around him better, but he finished 0-for-6 in the faceoff circle and despite finishing the night as a team-leading plus-three, the advanced stats for his whole line were not good.
Despite their offensive success, Granlund's line didn't generate as many shot attempts as it gave up—and the trio played against a number of different line combinations. If this is an indication of his skillset, Granlund could become one of those divisive players that may or may not be "good" but for now, the only number that matters to me is the goal total on the scoreboard.
I don't know quite what to make of Matt Bartkowski's three-point night, either. The guy who didn't have a single regular-season goal on his resume when he joined the Canucks was named first star thanks to a career night that saw him pot two goals on three shots—his fourth and fifth of the season—and add an assist as well, knocking him up to 15 points on the season.
Since the brutal game against Minnesota last week when Bartkowski was minus-four, he hasn't been too bad—and last night, he was excellent.
#Canucks If this counts, Bartkowski is up to 3 points on the night.
Combined age of the three players who collected points on that goal: 58.
The Canucks don't play again until Sunday, so they're holding an optional practice at Rogers Arena today. Saturday will be the team's annual open practice, with fans in attendance.
On the trade front, the Vrbata-and-Hamhuis-to-Chicago dream died on Thursday afternoon when the Blackhawks gave up their first-round draft pick and prospect Marko Dano to bring back former Hawk Andrew Ladd.
Ladd's a good fit for their needs at left wing and, as a player who was part of that 2010 Stanley Cup winner, his return to Chicago should give the team a nice emotional lift.
Word is, though, that they're still very interested in Hamhuis.
They'd love to get Hamhuis. Question is: Do they have the cap space and the assets to make it happen? https://t.co/qKnDYgucn1
The Hawks put forward Jiri Sekac on waivers today. That'll create another roster space, which will almost certainly be used for a defenseman. Whether that's Hamhuis or not, we'll need to wait and see.
Also worth noting, this report from Eric Stephens at the Orange County Register about trade plans for the Anaheim Ducks.
Earlier in the week, it sounded like the Ducks were happy to stand pat, since the team is on a roll. But general manager Bob Murray told reporters on Thursday that he's looking to add a winger—and it doesn't necessarily have to be a rental player.
“There are a few guys, if the price is reasonable, that could help,” Murray said. “I emphasize if the price is reasonable. I’ve given you an indication of what I mean by that. We think there are players who can help us in certain areas. Some of these guys we’d like to have for the future, too.
“L.A. does a great job trading for guys and keeping them. You have to have the room to do that, also. There are a few guys out there. A lot of pieces have to fall in place. But there are a few guys out there who can help in certain roles.”
Stephens mentions both Hansen and Vrbata by name as possible fits, as well as other rental players like Loui Eriksson, Dale Weise and Mikkel Boedker.
Anaheim is a tantalizing target because the team has the cap space and the assets to make big moves. For now, Murray says he plans to be conservative in the price that he pays.
“I’ve saved enough that if I think something is right, I can do it,” Murray said. “In saying that, I’ve never been one to go out and trade my first-round pick. I get lots of calls asking me about the Theodores, Larssons and Ritchies of the world. I’m just not one to do that now.
“If I’m going to do something like that, it would be at the draft, where I’ll make changes to my hockey team.”
I don't think a Hansen deal gets done without a first or one of those high-level prospects that Murray says are currently off the table.
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