Oof. That was not a good showing from the team. The Canucks lost 2-0 to the Canes last night, getting shut out for the second time in four games (0-2-2 over that span). They had a season-low 15 shots on net. They had two PP opportunities in the third and didn’t do anything with them – they’re 2 for their last 15 attempts. The team is 0-11-3 when trailing after two. They have zero goals at five on five in four of their last six games. Not playing playoff caliber hockey at the moment.
If you wanna watch the highlights for whatever reason, you can:
After yet another “identity building” game against the Caps, the Canucks were back to square one last night. The Canes were a tired team playing a newly-signed backup goalie, and the hanging-on-to-the-playoffs-by-a-thread Canucks barely put up a fight. The 15 shots overall tied a season low, they had 29 blocked and 21 misses. They over-passed the puck on odd man rushes. They gave up looks to shoot. It doesn’t sit well with the fans or the coach.
“You've got to hit the net,” Tocchet told reporters. “I mean, that's the frustrating part. We had a lot of O-zone time, but we're just missing opportunities. You guys look at the shot clock, I look at missed opportunities. Two-on-one, we try to pass (and) miss. These are crucial things. You've got to throw pucks at the net, hit the net with people going. I'm a little frustrated with the overpassing or missing the net.”
Since the beginning of December, the Canucks average of 23.3 shots per game – easily the lowest in the NHL. They allow 26.6 shots during that same span, so what we’re seeing is some pretty low-event hockey.
Despite the loss, the players are keeping up the positive talk.
“Whether they played the night or before or not, we want to come out a certain way,” Myers said. “We did some good things. Some things to clean up and some ways to get some more pucks to the net, some more bodies to the net, I think would help our group. But you know what? You've got to stay positive. We've got a chance tomorrow night to come back and win a hockey game, and we've just got to come together and come out ready to play tomorrow.”
It seems like after repeating the same thing so many times, there’d be a level of change or internal understanding… either on an individual, systems level, or team makeup level. Maybe the last one is coming, as something is off with the team as a whole. For now, Tocchet remains optimistic.
“You've got to stick with it,” Tocchet said. “You've got to work on your game. Confidence, you can't buy at a store. You've got to continue to work at it. You've got to put pucks on net. The power play's got to come up with a goal for us. Bottom line.”
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