Canuckleheads Fan Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 4 hours ago, Tofu_Bud said: Wasnt sure if they are travelling tonight. My understanding is they were staying at the same hotel for all three games. It's the best road trip of the season as far as travel is concerned. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hairy Kneel Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 1 minute ago, Strawbone said: I'm having a hard time accepting that this team is really good. So many years of disappointments... but this year feels different. I'm never worried if the other team scores first or makes a big push... we almost always seem to have an answer. This team has some swagger and I think they will make noise in the playoffs. I can't wait! Seeing Petie and JT get their swagger back is worth it! 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post CanucksJay Posted January 9 Popular Post Share Posted January 9 I'm pretty annoyed with some fans here who are singling out and criticizing Kuz despite an amazing game by the ENTIRE team. There was nothing wrong with his game tonight. His line was fine. Its not like he turned it over at the blue line and was responsible for a goal against like Boeser was. The line had chances but didn't bury it. I really liked Soucy game tonight. Made some nice plays and really brought calmness to the D. Lately my top 4 would be Hughes Hronek Soucy and Cole. Zad has dropped off a bit so he and Myers should be 3rd pairing. 3 3 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canuckleheads Fan Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 1 hour ago, Pure961089 said: Would you trade the 1st rounder and Bains to Buffalo for mittlestat? Nope, how would we fit him under the cap? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post JamesB Posted January 9 Popular Post Share Posted January 9 Very late comments. 1. Exciting, satisfying win with a lot of skill on display from both teams, but especially from the Canucks. And, once again, it was an excellent team effort. Everyone played well. As one of the announcers said at one point, "there were no passengers tonight". 2. A lot of the "buzz" is about the Lotto line, and for good reason. But my top headline is a standard hockey maxim: "the team with the better goalie usually wins". I thought Demmer was excellent. After the Canucks went up 2-1 in the first the Rangers had several good chances and Demmer came up big. Same story in the 2nd when the score was 3-2 and when the Rangers made a strong push in the third. Maybe Demmer would stop the 2nd or 3rd Ranger goal on a real good night, but he made a lot of high quality saves facing over 40 shots overall. 3. Shesterkin was not bad, even though he gave up 5 goals on 25 shots. All 5 goals were grade A chances -- passes into the slot (one cross seam and one from behind the net) and three outstanding high-skill plays from in close (Petey, Boeser, and Hoggy). Once again, the Canucks showed their strategy of going for high quality chances instead of shot volume. Even though the Rangers outshot the Canucks by a significant margin, the Canucks actually won the expected goals battle at 5-on-5. That has been typical for the Canucks this year: fewer shots but more expected goals. And that effect is stronger if you adjust for score (the team that is behind usually shoots more). 4. Okay, time for a comment about the Lotto line. Last game I wondered if the Lotto line strategy could work against a team that can put a high quality shutdown pairing on the ice any maybe neutralize your 3 top forwards. So the Rangers hard-matched Trouba and K. Miller against the Lotto line and Petey, in particular, basically made Miller and Trouba look silly. (They were a combined -5.) Petey was flying tonight and Miller continues to play a very high intensity game. I don't know how long they can keep it up but Tocchet will ride the wave as long he can. 5. Great to see Hogz score a couple of excellent high skill goals. Of course he always had offensive talent. The question is whether he is consistent enough on D (not miss assignments). His defensive play looked fine to me tonight and his expected goals percentage was positive. If he has finally had enough reps for solid D play to become a habit that would a big plus for the Canucks in the second half. 6. The Blueger line did not score tonight but they looked good in the advanced stats and played well. My only criticism would be that Trocheck kind of blew by Blueger on his goal. That play illustrated something Tocchet has emphasized: it is important for forwards to be skating forward when backchecking -- not stationary or skating backwards. But, hey, it's hard to play perfectly. 7. Juulsen came out and Zadorov came back in and played with Cole. Having two lefties together is not much of a disadvantage if the two guys are primarily defensively oriented. That pairing was pretty good and Tocchet was able to even out the ice time. The highest ice-time on the D was Hughes at 21:49 and the lowest was Soucy at 18:46. But I think Juulsen was playing well, so I am not sure that it made much difference. Nice to have some depth on defence. 8. I was watching Kuzy closely again. He wasn't bad but it would be hard to say he was good. He is trying but he seems to be "squeezing his stick" and lacking in confidence, which is understandable. But I would just keep going with the same lines for a while. Hard to argue with overall team success. 9. The game against the Islanders looks like a tough game. Tonight's game was a high intensity game and an emotional high. There is no way to avoid being a bit drained the next day, so the back-to-back is a big test. I would not be surprised by a loss but I think we have a realistic hope for another win given how well the Canucks are playing. 3 1 4 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spook007 Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 6 hours ago, Devron said: Only beat bad teams. Overachieving Bingo.... smashed it... was thinking that exact same thing. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post spook007 Posted January 9 Popular Post Share Posted January 9 (edited) 5 hours ago, JamesB said: Very late comments. 1. Exciting, satisfying win with a lot of skill on display from both teams, but especially from the Canucks. And, once again, it was an excellent team effort. Everyone played well. As one of the announcers said at one point, "there were no passengers tonight". 2. A lot of the "buzz" is about the Lotto line, and for good reason. But my top headline is a standard hockey maxim: "the team with the better goalie usually wins". I thought Demmer was excellent. After the Canucks went up 2-1 in the first the Rangers had several good chances and Demmer came up big. Same story in the 2nd when the score was 3-2 and when the Rangers made a strong push in the third. Maybe Demmer would stop the 2nd or 3rd Ranger goal on a real good night, but he made a lot of high quality saves facing over 40 shots overall. 3. Shesterkin was not bad, even though he gave up 5 goals on 25 shots. All 5 goals were grade A chances -- passes into the slot (one cross seam and one from behind the net) and three outstanding high-skill plays from in close (Petey, Boeser, and Hoggy). Once again, the Canucks showed their strategy of going for high quality chances instead of shot volume. Even though the Rangers outshot the Canucks by a significant margin, the Canucks actually won the expected goals battle at 5-on-5. That has been typical for the Canucks this year: fewer shots but more expected goals. And that effect is stronger if you adjust for score (the team that is behind usually shoots more). 4. Okay, time for a comment about the Lotto line. Last game I wondered if the Lotto line strategy could work against a team that can put a high quality shutdown pairing on the ice any maybe neutralize your 3 top forwards. So the Rangers hard-matched Trouba and K. Miller against the Lotto line and Petey, in particular, basically made Miller and Trouba look silly. (They were a combined -5.) Petey was flying tonight and Miller continues to play a very high intensity game. I don't know how long they can keep it up but Tocchet will ride the wave as long he can. 5. Great to see Hogz score a couple of excellent high skill goals. Of course he always had offensive talent. The question is whether he is consistent enough on D (not miss assignments). His defensive play looked fine to me tonight and his expected goals percentage was positive. If he has finally had enough reps for solid D play to become a habit that would a big plus for the Canucks in the second half. 6. The Blueger line did not score tonight but they looked good in the advanced stats and played well. My only criticism would be that Trocheck kind of blew by Blueger on his goal. That play illustrated something Tocchet has emphasized: it is important for forwards to be skating forward when backchecking -- not stationary or skating backwards. But, hey, it's hard to play perfectly. 7. Juulsen came out and Zadorov came back in and played with Cole. Having two lefties together is not much of a disadvantage if the two guys are primarily defensively oriented. That pairing was pretty good and Tocchet was able to even out the ice time. The highest ice-time on the D was Hughes at 21:49 and the lowest was Soucy at 18:46. But I think Juulsen was playing well, so I am not sure that it made much difference. Nice to have some depth on defence. 8. I was watching Kuzy closely again. He wasn't bad but it would be hard to say he was good. He is trying but he seems to be "squeezing his stick" and lacking in confidence, which is understandable. But I would just keep going with the same lines for a while. Hard to argue with overall team success. 9. The game against the Islanders looks like a tough game. Tonight's game was a high intensity game and an emotional high. There is no way to avoid being a bit drained the next day, so the back-to-back is a big test. I would not be surprised by a loss but I think we have a realistic hope for another win given how well the Canucks are playing. Another perfect on point write up James. Nailed it to a tee....again. Bluger was caught flat footed on the Trocheck goal. Don't let them go by you or through you. Force the turn over or the hit. Demko was stellar... And how about the quality of the goals? Magic. Besides Peteys and Hogs ridiculous goals the nice little saucer pass from Petey to Boeser. Hogs bar down, and maybe the most inportant of the lot, Millers quick equalizer... This was the game of the year so far... what a spectacle. Edited January 9 by spook007 1 3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iinatcc Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 The Lotto line essentially makes the Canucks a one line team. I know the Garland line will be productive but it also means the Canucks won't have a very effective 2nd line. Problem now is that teams will simply just adjust to shutdown the Lotto line. In theory a 2nd like with Mikheyev and Kuzmenko is pretty good but the line also lacks a true 2nd line center and Kuzmenko is still not on Tocchet's good side. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post spook007 Posted January 9 Popular Post Share Posted January 9 7 hours ago, AlwaysACanuckFan said: Canucks who averages the most goals per game, have beaten the Devils 6-4, Rangers 6-3, have scored 5+ goals in last 5 wins. Remember the start of the season, when the dooms day sayers were preaching to us... "Be prepared for boring low scoring games under Tocchet...." If this is what "boring low scoring games" looks like, sign me up.... 4 2 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
N4ZZY Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 2 hours ago, Canuckleheads Fan said: My understanding is they were staying at the same hotel for all three games. It's the best road trip of the season as far as travel is concerned. Oh, that's great. Should be fresh for tomorrow's game, despite it being a back to back. Might not feel that way. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
N4ZZY Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 9 minutes ago, spook007 said: Remember the start of the season, when the dooms day sayers were preaching to us... "Be prepared for boring low scoring games under Tocchet...." If this is what "boring low scoring games" looks like, sign me up.... 12 goals over 2 games. 6-4 scoring against Jersey, and then 6-3 game against the Rangers. They can score, at least during the regular season, but can they defend? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
N4ZZY Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 21 minutes ago, iinatcc said: The Lotto line essentially makes the Canucks a one line team. I know the Garland line will be productive but it also means the Canucks won't have a very effective 2nd line. Problem now is that teams will simply just adjust to shutdown the Lotto line. In theory a 2nd like with Mikheyev and Kuzmenko is pretty good but the line also lacks a true 2nd line center and Kuzmenko is still not on Tocchet's good side. If they're going to load it up like that, it probably won't work for the playoffs. Allvin will need to bolster the second line for sure. Even if they don't load up, I think it might be prudent for management to bolster the top six. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spook007 Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 1 minute ago, N4ZZY said: 12 goals over 2 games. 6-4 scoring against Jersey, and then 6-3 game against the Rangers. They can score, at least during the regular season, but can they defend? Remains to be seen, but so far so good... 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I.AM.THE.WALRUS Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 Ya they are just gonna get better this was so worth the wait… over a decade of futility Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I.AM.THE.WALRUS Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 1 hour ago, spook007 said: Another perfect on point write up James. Nailed it to a tee....again. Bluger was caught flat footed by the Trocheck goal. Force the turn over or the hit. Don't let them go by you or through you. Demko was stellar... And how about the quality of the goals? Magic. Besides Peteys and Hogs ridiculous goals the nice little saucer pass from Petey to Boeser. Hogs bar down, and maybe the most inportant of the lot, Millers quick equalizer... This was the game of the year so far... what a spectable. Tonight’s game more than makes up for that 20 monthly subscription to SN 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I.AM.THE.WALRUS Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 1 hour ago, iinatcc said: The Lotto line essentially makes the Canucks a one line team. I know the Garland line will be productive but it also means the Canucks won't have a very effective 2nd line. Problem now is that teams will simply just adjust to shutdown the Lotto line. In theory a 2nd like with Mikheyev and Kuzmenko is pretty good but the line also lacks a true 2nd line center and Kuzmenko is still not on Tocchet's good side. The third and fourth can and will score - the second needs a CENTER or just needs to work on chemistry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I.AM.THE.WALRUS Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 2 hours ago, CanucksJay said: I'm pretty annoyed with some fans here who are singling out and criticizing Kuz despite an amazing game by the ENTIRE team. There was nothing wrong with his game tonight. His line was fine. Its not like he turned it over at the blue line and was responsible for a goal against like Boeser was. The line had chances but didn't bury it. I really liked Soucy game tonight. Made some nice plays and really brought calmness to the D. Lately my top 4 would be Hughes Hronek Soucy and Cole. Zad has dropped off a bit so he and Myers should be 3rd pairing. Our D played a great game and will only just get better - kuzz played a much simpler game and played safe hockey - ya Brock was the more sloppy one… maybe cuz they had a tougher matchup? im guilty of being critical but at the same time you can never grow complacent in competitive sports Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sativika Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 (edited) Wow. That was highly entertaining, wasn't it. Not just 'cuz we won, (Though us winning does add to the entertainment appeal!), but cuz' we took it to the Rangers! Well......Demmer with the Lotto line took it to the Rangers. As some in here said; the Lotto line deployment is great, but it is concerning that opponents would key in on them and therefore render us pretty much a one line team. However, as witnessed last night, the other lines can step up. With that said................. If the 2nd line is to be flanked by the two Russians, then it's evident that we could use a legit 2nd line centre. I like Suter. He's definitely a Swiss Army knife player, but to me he's not suited long term between Kuzy and Ilya. It seemed that their deployment was time depleted compared to the lower 3rd and 4th lines, no? Kuzy's line looked good and if Kuzy gets his confidence back. Watch out. As mention earlier; it does seem Kuzy is still gripping his stick too tight. Keep it simple son and shoot the puck. Otherwise as a whole the 2nd line did some good things. Hogs always had skill. He demonstrated such yesterday; beauty between the legs highlight goal. And Petey's highlight goal is not to be ignored either. Woohoo! I'm a happy camper.............. Go Canucks Go!!!!! Edited January 9 by Sativika 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spook007 Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 8 hours ago, Dom said: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DownUndaCanuck Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 Surprised to see our elite talent just walk all over NYR and their top defence. I know their goalie hasn't been to great at times but we just danced around the Ranger's defence in their own barn. Obviously big shout out to the Lotto line, they're all in the prime of their careers and they're making beautiful-looking plays. Right now they're hot and getting them together again has really ignited Petey which is good to see. Miller draws a lot of attention away from Petey and playing on the wing is just easy money for him. That was a very easy 4 point night for him, he made it look easy. Boeser's top-end offensive IQ fits so well. There were a fair few plays tonight where a NYR forward or defenceman would pinch hard on the puck carrier and they'd just sift it through for an odd-man rush or forward in on goal cleanly which you rarely see from top teams, we made them look like a bottom-feeder. Nice to have 3 of the best forwards in the NHL again. Got to keep them together and ride them as hard as we can until they eventually fizzle out, but right now they're scoring pretty goals against top defencemen and goalies almost at will. NYI will be a very interesting stingy test for them but if they can blow up the Rangers like that, anyone's fair game. As good as MacKinnon and McDavid are, the Lotto line is right up there right now. Of course top-loading our team means our bottom-9 leaves a lot to be desired, and our 2nd line is basically a 3rd line on most contending teams, but they still played well. I think if our bottom-9 just play Tocchet-hockey and defend well, they'll get some chances and it's surprising to see we have enough talent to score goals. Guys like Suter and Blueger who were sort-of-plugs in the past have shown some real offensive flare. Joshua and Garland looked solid again, nothing crazy, but good to see Aman make a beautiful pass and get up the rush after getting destroyed defensively last game. Big shout out to Hoglander with two beautiful goals, again - we need depth scoring when our top line is so heavy so good to see we can generate it from just about anywhere in our bottom-9. I think our defence played fairly well, we got destroyed with shots against but I don't remember seeing too many big breakdowns. Hughes and Hronek are really benefiting from the Lotto line as well, you can tell when they're on the ice they're going full-attack. This did burn us on one of the NYR goals, a bit Green-coaching style when we had Boeser make a dumb pass on the offensive blueline which lead to a rush against and they scored. Got to keep that in mind going forward, I've seen a few risky offensive blueline plays in the last few games. We used to do this stupidly all the time under Green and it backfired so often but tonight was the first time we properly paid for it. Big shout out to Demko who I thought was dreadful against NJD and really saved our bacon tonight when he had to, if he had an average game we may not have won but he made a lot of saves and a lot of big saves at times too. Overall, great performance, got to keep this going against NYI who will pose a completely different threat but surely DeSmith is ready for a goalie duel. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spook007 Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 8 hours ago, canucks curse said: Interesting Zads is lowest TOI coachibg staff really trusts Myers he’s been playing 3rd most D man TOI all year He has actually been playing well.... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrJockitch Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 Was watching the NY broadcast and they were very complimentary. ‘Man the forecheck was flying last night. They were going in waves. Other than a really ugly giveaway by Brock that would have sat Kuz for a week it was almost a perfect game. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AussieCanuckinUK Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 the Lotto line continues to produce the points and definitely nice to see Hoggs chip in a few, but they still need more contributions, like hello Mikehev...Kuzy, Lafferty...and they still need to work on their D coverage, and Demko has been up and down in terms of his overall save percentage and some of those goals looked....well...but for sure he is still coming up huge when needed. Now we all know the stat for wins when ahead after 40, but the more interesting is what is their record when trailing after 40? and their record in one goal games. as we all know come playoff times everything changes Don't get me wrong as a Canuck fan definitely happy for the team and for us long suffering fans, but a part of me still goes...'what could go wrong' Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alflives Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 6 minutes ago, AussieCanuckinUK said: the Lotto line continues to produce the points and definitely nice to see Hoggs chip in a few, but they still need more contributions, like hello Mikehev...Kuzy, Lafferty...and they still need to work on their D coverage, and Demko has been up and down in terms of his overall save percentage and some of those goals looked....well...but for sure he is still coming up huge when needed. Now we all know the stat for wins when ahead after 40, but the more interesting is what is their record when trailing after 40? and their record in one goal games. as we all know come playoff times everything changes Don't get me wrong as a Canuck fan definitely happy for the team and for us long suffering fans, but a part of me still goes...'what could go wrong' Your PBSD needs treatment. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CanucksJay Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 1 hour ago, I.AM.THE.WALRUS said: Our D played a great game and will only just get better - kuzz played a much simpler game and played safe hockey - ya Brock was the more sloppy one… maybe cuz they had a tougher matchup? im guilty of being critical but at the same time you can never grow complacent in competitive sports Yup you can't be complacent but you also can't go after a guy who did nothing wrong... He listened to coaching, simplified his game and was more north south and he forechecked well. This has to become consistent and then the offense will come 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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