When the Canucks announced before Wednesday's opening game that Jacob Markstrom was undergoing an MRI, I figured his injury was something that would keep him out of the lineup for more than just a couple of days.
That suspicion was confirmed on Thursday.
At one point yesterday, Jim Benning told Scott Rintoul of TSN1040 that it would be three weeks before the re-evaluation, but that statement was later rescinded.
For now, my takeaway is that Markstrom will be out for "awhile," which puts the debut of this year's goalie controversy on hold for the foreseeable future.
Ryan Miller will get a chance to settle in as the undisputed No. 1 and play lots of games until Markstrom's ready to get back into action.
Meanwhile, summer signing Richard Bachman will continue to back up, and will probably see action during one of Vancouver's two back-to-back games in Southern California next week, against Anaheim on Monday and L.A. on Tuesday.
The only other back-to-back in October comes at the end of the month, with a visit to Dallas on October 28 followed by a game in Arizona the following night.
Iain MacIntyre of the
Vancouver Sun has a terrific profile of Bachman, who left his wife and six-month-old baby behind at their home base in Denver and hit the road with the U Haul and the dog to set up camp in Utica.
He'd barely arrived when the call-up came.
It was about a 25-hour drive Sunday and Monday, and then I finished up Tuesday morning. I got everything off the truck and was in the process of unpacking, then got the phone call and rushed around to collect my gear and I got here.
Taylor Fedun got tagged for dog-sitting duties until Bachman's wife could arrive a day later to handle the rest of the unpacking. And Bachman should be able to get a little bit of rest and settle into a routine now that he's here in Vancouver for the foreseeable future.
It sounds like he and his wife have a great attitude about his sometimes-unsettled professional life:
“This is my seventh year. I’ve had one-way deals, two-way deals, been up and down. Luckily, my wife is awesome with it, and that helps. I always look at it like I’m so fortunate to be playing a kids’ game and I’m getting paid for it. I make a living, support my family. No matter what’s going on, this is a good thing, and that’s what keeps me going. We’re so fortunate to be able to play and do what we do.”
MacIntyre also includes a rather far-fetched scenario about how Frank Corrado could end up back with the Canucks organization if he doesn't find his way onto Toronto's playing roster. Corrado was a healthy scratch for the Leafs' season-opener and continues to skate as an extra defenseman in practice. MacIntyre says that if Corrado gets put back on waivers and isn't claimed by another team, the Canucks could re-claim him—and send him straight to Utica if less than 30 days have passed since the initial waiver claim.
I won't hold my breath, but it's something to keep an eye on.
Speaking of former Vancouver defencemen, Jason Garrison made history on Thursday night when he became the first NHL player ever to score a 3-on-3 overtime goal as the Tampa Bay Lighting beat the Philadelphia Flyers.
I watched the end of that game live and WOW, was the OT frantic. Definitely up another notch from what we saw in preseason.
It was also a bit scary at times. Tyler Johnson crashed heavily into the end boards after skating furiously to get a piece of the Flyers' Scott Laughton as he bore down on a breakaway. Laughton was awarded a penalty shot, but failed to convert. Less than 30 seconds later, Alex Killorn sprung Garrison on a breakaway for the game-winner. Absolute insanity.
Garrison also scored earlier in the game, so he's off to a strong start on the stat sheet.
The Canucks are practicing today at 11 a.m. at Rogers Arena. It's expected that they'll plan to ice the same lineup for Saturday's home opener as they did on Wednesday in Calgary, which means Jake Virtanen—and his family and friends—are going to have to be patient about waiting for his first NHL game.
Jake's father Rainer told
Steve Ewen of
The Province that Virtanen went through a similar process as a 16-year-old in the WHL. He and his wife and a crew of friends will be on hand on Saturday, just in case the local boy gets into the lineup.
My guess is that a spot is more likely to open up in one of those back-to-back games in California next week, though I can't imagine Willie's going to take out Dorsett or Prust.
Just got confirmation—the Canucks are, indeed, using the same lines at today's practice:
That's good news for Jared McCann and Ben Hutton.
Derek Jory has a cute article at Canucks.com about the sleepless night that the two roommates endured before making their debuts on Wednesday.
“I swear time stopped,” laughed Hutton. “I checked (the clock) at 8:30 p.m. when we went to bed and it felt like I’d been lying there for hours and I looked again and it was only 9 p.m. Time was moving very slowly last night.”
Maybe Hutton's ability to slow time is what makes him so poised on the ice?
To wrap, today, a little self-promotion.
I just wrote a summary for Canucks Army about the ways that Vancouver looked better against Calgary on Wednesday than what we saw during last year's playoffs.
Click here to check it out.
As always, thanks for reading!
Vancouver Canucks Blogger • 
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