Tag Archives: vancouver canucks

CANUCKS BANTER: Vancouver Visits Buffalo In Early Morning Game At 10am PST Saturday

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CANUCKS BANTER     By Andrew Chernoff    November 6, 2015

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The Vancouver Canucks begin an intense 7-game road trip after a disappointing 3-2 home loss to Pittsburgh, while the Buffalo Sabres, after being beaten by Tampa Bay for the third time this year 4-1, attempt to get back on the winning track at home after losing both games of a brief 2-game road trip.

The Canucks are 1-4 in their last 5-meetings in Buffalo.

In their last 17-home games against the Canucks, the Sabres are 13-3-1.

The game is the first of two meetings with the Sabres this season. Buffalo visits Vancouver December 7. Vancouver split last season’s two-game series, losing 6-3 in Buffalo and winning 5-2 at Rogers Arena.

Vancouver goalie Ryan Miller will start his first game as a Canucks against his former team, as Vancouver looks for a win to get back on the winning track after splitting their last 6-games.

The Canucks are 4-1 in their last 5-road games and 1-5 in their last 6-Saturday games.

Daniel Sedin has scored 2-goals in his last 3-games; recording 6-points on 2-goals and 4-assists in 5-road games this season.

Henrik Sedin enters the game with a point in each of his last 4-games.

Daniel Sedin leads the Canucks in assists with 6-assists, while rookie Jared McCann is the top sniper with 5-goals.

CANUCKS JOTTINGS

Vancouver is:

  • 12-4 in their last 16 games playing on two days rest
  • 5-2 their last seven vs the Atlantic

Buffalo is:

  • 15-46 in their last 61 games following a loss of three or more goals
  • 14-42 in their last 56 vs. Western Conference

From: http://winnersandwhiners.com

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CANUCKS BANTER: Canucks Drop 3-2 Decision To Penguins

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CANUCKS BANTER     By Andrew Chernoff    November 5, 2015

Vancouver Continues To Struggle At Rogers Place

Despite losing to the Pittsburgh Penguins, the Vancouver Canucks will leave for their 14-day road trip with a share of 1rst-place in the Pacific Division.

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They just may not return in first place or with a share of first place.

The Canucks made it close at the end of the game on Wednesday night, but alas, their home win streak coming to an end at 2-games.

The Canucks had their chances early but could not score that timely goal to stymie the Penguins and create a momentum change that could have benefited them much earlier than their effort, mighty as it was, late in the game. At that point, the clock became their opponent, not Pittsburgh, and the Canucks ran out of time.

Canucks begin the seven road game stretch on November 7 against Buffalo, ending on November 18 against Winnipeg.  In between they play New Jersey, Columbus, Ottawa, Toronto, and Montreal.

The trip will indicate what their mettle is and how well forged they are as a competitive team and whether they are excelling at a high level of expectation or not.

I believe the Canucks could face a tougher trip then they might expect. My prediction? Canucks return home with a record of 3-2-2 from the road trip.

Question marks for me are still the Canucks inability to score timely goals, along with their power play.

Even though the youngsters are playing well, there may be times on the trip that their inexperience may make winning difficult with key mistakes at the worst of times. That, along with other variables are out of the Canucks control, as long as the coaching staff prepare them for each and every game.

h         From: Yahoo Sports Canada

Backup goaltending is still something I still have to see more of to be more confident with.

The biggest plus for me is that Vancouver has played well on the road so far this season.

The veteran core of the Canucks have to be out in front in the leadership role. If the veterans are able to stay motivated game in and game out, and keep their competitive spirit on the high side, Vancouver should have a successful road trip.

CANUCKS JOTTINGS

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Statistics for Canucks Banter provided with thanks by the NHL, Vancouver Canucks and SportingCharts.

CANUCKS BANTER: Pittsburgh Visits Vancouver To End Two Game Home Stand

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CANUCKS BANTER     By Andrew Chernoff    November 4, 2015

Canucks Go For Three Consecutive Wins At Home Tonight

The Canucks end their 2-game home stand and go for their 7th win of the season tonight, as they try to keep up with the Los Angeles Kings both tied atop the Pacific Division.

Vancouver enters the game having defeated the Philadelphia Flyers on November 2 by a 4-1 margin, extending their winning streak to 2-games. Vancouver is 5-2-3 in their last 10-games.

The Penguins come into the game riding a 4-game winning streak, defeating the Toronto Maple Leafs in their last game by a 4-0 score. Pittsburgh is 7-3 in their last 10-games.

Marc-Andre Fleury’s second shutout of the season ties him for the NHL lead. That gives Fleury 17 shutouts over the last three seasons, tied for the NHL lead with Carey Price.

This is the fifth game in a stretch that will see the Penguins play six of seven games on the road (4-0 thus far).

Tonight marks the first of two meetings this season between the Canucks and Penguins. Vancouver will travel to Pittsburgh on Jan. 23rd.

Last year the Canucks swept the Penguins, 2-0, as Eddie Lack and Ryan Miller each posted shutouts, outscoring Pittsburgh 8-0. Those wins by the Canucks snapped the Penguins’ four-game winning streak in the series.

The Penguins have been victorious in three of their last five visits to Vancouver.

Overall the Canucks are 5-4-1 in their last 10 meetings with the Penguins. They have gone seven consecutive games without a regulation loss against Pittsburgh (4-0-3) with their last regulation lost coming on Nov. 3, 2000.

CANUCKS AT A GLANCE

  • Radim Vrbata (2-2-4) has a four game point streak entering tonight’s game. Henrik Sedin (0-3-3) has a three game assist streak entering tonight’s game.
  • Through Nov. 4, Jared McCann leads the team in goals and ranks t-second among rookies in that category (5); he is also the first Canucks player since Dane Jackson in 1993 to have at least five consecutive goals to start his career (no assists). McCann currently ranks fifth among rookies in shooting percentage (29.4%).
  • Ben Hutton ranks t-fourth among NHL rookies in assists (5).
  • Alex Edler leads VAN in time on ice (24:52) and has led the team in that category in nine of 11 games he’s played. He currently ranks 9th in the NHL in TOI/GP. Last season, Edler ranked first on the team in average ice time per game (23:58) and led the team in TOI on 59 separate occasions including 26 games where led all skaters in TOI.
  • Ryan Miller has an NHL-best 53 wins in games decided by a shootout; he sits t-23rd all-time in wins with 328 and is in a tie with Carey Price for 46th all-time in shutouts (36).

The Canucks are currently tied for 1rst place with Los Angeles ,in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference, with 16-points; 4-points ahead of San Jose, who are alone in second place. Arizona currently is in 3rd place with 11-points, 1-point ahead of Edmonton in 4th place with 10-points.

Vancouver, San Jose, and Los Angeles both have a game in-hand on Edmonton and Calgary. Arizona and Anaheim both have a game in-hand on on Los Angeles, Vancouver, San Jose; two games in-hand on Edmonton and Calgary.

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Vancouver is among the top 6-teams in the Western Conference, and are tied for the 3rd best team in the conference with their 16-points. The Dallas Stars are at the  top of the conference with 20-points, currently sporting an 8-2 record in their last 10-games.

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Canucks are among the top 10-teams in the NHL, and are tied for the 5th best team in the league with their 16-points. The Montreal Canadians are the top team with 23-points, with a record of 11-2-1, all wins in regulation play.

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Pittsburgh is in 4rth-place in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference, with 14-points. The New York Rangers are at top spot in the division, with 18-points; followed by the New York Islanders with 17-points, and the Philadelphia Flyers with 16-points. New Jersey is currently in 5th place in the division with 13-points. 

Pittsburgh and Washington both have a game in-hand on the Rangers, Devils, Panthers and Flyers; 2-games in-hand on the Islanders and Blue Jackets. The Rangers, Devils, Panthers, and Flyers all have 1-game in-hand on the Islanders and Blue Jackets.

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Daniel Sedin leads the Canucks in scoring with 9-points including a team high 6-assists, followed by Alex Burrows with 8-points; Brandon Sutter and Henrik Sedin are next with 7-points.  Radim Vrbata closely follows with 6-points. Brandon Prust, Alex Edler; rookies rookie Jared McCann and Ben Hutton; Jannik Hansen are on their skate blades with 5-points.

Rookie Jared McCann leads the Canucks as the top sniper with 5-goals in 10-games played.

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For the Penguins, Evgeni Malkin leads Philadelphia with 10-points, followed by Phil Kessel with 6-points and Sidney Crosby with 5-points.

Malkin and Kessel lead Pittsburgh with goals scored with 4-goals each.

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GAME JOTTINGS

The following are with thanks to SportingCharts

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Statistics for Canucks Banter provided with thanks by the NHL, Vancouver Canucks and SportingCharts.

CANUCKS BANTER: Canucks Win Second At Home, Take Top Spot In Pacific Division

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CANUCKS BANTER     By Andrew Chernoff    November 3, 2015

Canucks Take Current Win Streak To 2-Games With Home Victory

The Canucks began their short 2-game home stand with their 2nd consecutive home win and their 6th win of the young season Monday, November 2, with a 4-1 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers, leaping over the Los Angeles Kings atop the Pacific Division.

The Kings played on the road against the Chicago Black Hawks Monday night, dropping a 4-2 decision, ending their 6-game winning streak.

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Canucks are among the top 8-teams in the NHL, and are tied for the 4rth best team in the league with their 16-points. The Montreal Canadians are the top team with 22-points, on 11-wins and 2-losses, all wins in regulation play.

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Jake Virtanen scored his first goal in the NHL, and Bo Horvat finally got back on the score sheet with a goal and a assist. Rookie Ben Hutton got his 5th assist in 12-games to take over the assist lead among all rookie defenseman.

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Current Canucks injured include:

  1.  Chris Higgins Status: Fractured foot (IR) Sustained: September 21, 2015 Games missed: 11
  2. Jacob Markstrom Status: Hamstring (IR) Sustained: October 6, 2015 Games missed: 11
  3. Brandon Prust Status: Ankle (IR) Sustained: October 27, 2015 Games missed: 2
  4. Luca Sbisa  Status: Undisclosed (IR) Sustained: October 30, 2015 Games missed: 1

Thanks to the Canucks and NHL for assisting with this post.