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Vancouver Canucks without Ben Hutton & Ryan Spooner as they host the Leafs |
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Wednesday March 6 - Vancouver Canucks vs. Toronto Maple Leafs - 6 p.m. - Sportsnet, Sportsnet 650
Vancouver Canucks: 66 GP, 27-30-9, 63 pts, sixth in Pacific Division
Toronto Maple Leafs: 66 GP, 41-21-4, 86 pts, third in Atlantic Division
This year, the NHL's schedule-makers have given us a break from the usual debate about whether or not it's insulting to Canucks fans to have Vancouver's annual home game against Toronto run in the early slot on Saturday's Hockey Night in Canada double-header.
Although we get a mid-week visit this year, it's still important to take note of a change in start time. Puck drop will be one hour earlier than usual for a weekday game, at 6 p.m. PT.
The Leafs are in the midst of their three-game Western Canadian road trip, which saw them easily dispatch Calgary on Monday by a score of 6-2. They'll finish off in Edmonton on Saturday, and given that that today's high temperature in Oil-town is minus-10 with a wind chill that'll make it feel closer to minus-20, I imagine the Leafs will stay in town for another day or two. Meanwhile, after just one game at home, the Canucks will play in Edmonton on Thursday before finishing off this week's three-in-four with a rematch against Vegas at Rogers Arena on Saturday.
In addition to losing some of their dignity in last weekend's shutout loss in Vegas, the Canucks also lost a couple of players to injury. Ben Hutton will miss his first game since two healthy scratches at the beginning of the season due to a foot injury, suffered when he blocked a shot in the third period against the Golden Knights on Sunday. Ryan Spooner will also miss Wednesday's game with a groin injury.
So, here's how the lines rolled at practice on Tuesday:
Guillaume Brisebois has once again been recalled from Utica as the team's seventh defenseman.
If Hutton's out for any period of time, that would certainly create an easy roster hole for Quinn Hughes to jump into once his NCAA season comes to an end. As I mentioned on Monday, that could happen as early as this weekend, depending on the results of No. 6 Michigan's best-of-three Big Ten quarterfinal against No. 3 Minnesota, in Minnesota.
The Gophers have been led this season by a legacy player. Rem Pitlick is the son of Lance Pitlick, a Minnesota alumnus who played defense for the Ottawa Senators and Florida Panthers in the late 90s and early 2000s. A junior who plays centre, Rem was drafted by Nashville in the third round in 2016.
As for Quinn, he wrapped up the regular-season portion of his sophomore year with 5-28-33 in 30 games for Michigan. That's four points better than his 29 points in 37 games as a freshman and was good enough to lead his team in scoring. Another Canucks prospect, Will Lockwood, currently sits in second place with 15 goals and 30 points in 34 games—a nice bounce-back year for him after he missed a good chunk of last season following shoulder surgery when he was injured at the outdoor game at the 2018 World Junior Championship.
The Wolverines suffered another major loss at this year's World Juniors, when forward Josh Norris was knocked out for the rest of the year.
Sticking with the injury theme, but returning to the Canucks, it was announced on Tuesday that Brandon Sutter is undergoing season-ending hernia surgery.
When Sutter was acquired by the Canucks four years ago, his durability was supposed to be one of his strong suits: he'd missed just three games in his previous six seasons. Boy, did things change:
Sutter has two more years remaining on the contract that carries a cap hit of $4.375 million per season, but his no-trade clause changes to a 15-team limited no-trade clause after this season. Injuries may limit his trade value, but his last name still carries a degree of cachet in the NHL.
Sutter could probably use a change of scenery after such a frustrating time in Vancouver, and Adam Gaudette has shown that he's able to fill the roster spot. I hope that's a deal that Jim Benning explores this summer.
On the bright side, three players on Vancouver's injured list did make appearances at Rogers Arena on Wednesday, although none is expected to return to the lineup imminently.
After his heroic performance in Vegas on Sunday, Jacob Markstrom is once again expected to get the start in goal for Vancouver, while Freddy Andersen should get the nod for Toronto.
As for the Leafs, their key injuries are to forward Nazem Kadri (concussion) and defensemen Jake Gardiner (back) and Travis Dermott (shoulder). Kadri is with the team on this trip and has been skating, but is not expected to play.
Tonight's Leafs lineup will feature the team's two most recent acquisitions—Nic Petan at centre on the fourth line and Jake Muzzin on the team's second defense pairing with Nikita Zaitsev.
One other interesting note about a guest on hand for Wednesday's contest:
That order is literally getting taller by the day. After a win by Dallas and an overtime loss by Minnesota on Tuesday, the Canucks go into Wednesday's game now nine points out of that second wild-card berth.
One final note — whether you're watching from home or at the rink, you can get in on a chance at another giant 50/50 jackpot:
Enjoy the game!
Vancouver Canucks Blogger • 
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