Good bet Vegas is desperate for a win
Club makes first visit to Vancouver
The Canucks return home from a California road trip to face the surprising Vegas Golden Knights.
THE BIG MATCHUP Vegas’ desperation versus Canucks’ momentum
It was a tough road trip for the Canucks, but they ended it with an impressive win in Los Angeles. Generally, it’s believed, teams don’t carry momentum home after a long swing of road games. Against Vegas, the Canucks are getting a team desperate to make amends after its first blowout loss of the season in Edmonton.
FIVE KEYS TO THE GAME
1. Goaltending
On paper, this is the Canucks’ biggest advantage. Both of their goalies have played unexpectedly well this season. Meanwhile, Vegas has a goaltending crisis on its hands. Injuries to its top three goalies may force Vegas to start teenager Dylan Ferguson, who has a save percentage below .900 playing in the WHL. It could be a big opportunity for Ferguson, who is from Vancouver Island, but it’s likely that minor- league call- up Maxime Lagace will get the start.
2. Puck- moving defence
The Canucks plan to weather the loss of Chris Tanev by leaning on an Alex Edler- Derrick Pouliot pairing. Both are good puck- movers and they’ve been great together the past two games. Pouliot, acquired in a trade last month, is already paying off. He’s a good skater and an even better passer in transition. Both of those skills are keys in the Canucks’ current system.
3. The James Neal effect
Vegas has a lot of players who most fans don’t know. James Neal is not among them. Neal is not only the heart and soul of the Golden Knights, he’s also the team’s goalscoring leader and offensive force. In 17 games, he has 10 goals, which puts him in range of a 50- goal pace. Slowing down Vegas, which has had this surprising start to the season, starts with stopping Neal.
4. The Canucks’ reinvented power play
The Canucks scored two powerplay goals and Vancouver almost held a parade. Things have been that bleak. Many fans and media had been calling for Brock Boeser to be put in a shooter’s spot and for Bo Horvat to get a bigger role. Both of those things happened for Vancouver Tuesday. Can the Canucks keep it up? Recent history suggests they can’t.
5. Coaching
Both Gerard Gallant and Travis Green have had a positive impact in their first year as head coach of these two teams. Gallant is an early favourite for coach of the year. His expansion team is tied for fourth in goals per game, which is remarkable given the talent. Green, on other hand, has the Canucks playing great defensively and they’re tied for sixth in goals against.