Canucks ‘Barried’ by Avs’ comeback
The Vancouver Canucks blew a 4-1 lead Tuesday at Rogers Arena, giving up four consecutive powerplay goals.
The last one came in overtime and it gave the Colorado Avalanche a 5-4 NHL victory.
In all, the Avs went five for six on the power play and Tyson Barrie had a five-point night for the winners, including a goal at 16:59 of the third period that forced the overtime.
This is what we learned:
HORVAT QUIETLY PUTTING TOGETHER GREAT SEASON
Despite all the losses, and a broken ankle, Bo Horvat is threading together some season.
His 16 goals in 42 games puts him on a 31-goal pace. And if you prorate his 15 assists over the course of a season. he’s been churning out points at a 61-point year-long rate.
In the fall, when he signed his extension, many believed his US$5.5-million-a-year salary was a bit much.
The consensus was that he’d grow into the salary during his first couple of seasons.
Turns out, he’s already there. Most impressively, he didn’t miss a beat after losing seven weeks of playing time due to that broken bone in his foot.
Since returning to action, Horvat has 12 points in 16 games.
BOESER PLAYING IN PAIN
The Canucks’ super rookie has been a little Clark Kent lately and that wrist injury is a reasonable explanation why.
Brock Boeser was seen wincing on the bench in the game, shaking out that wrist, which he admits has been causing him some issues.
GUDBRANSON RECEIVES MIXED RESPONSE
They weren’t chanting “three more years! three more years!” when Erik Gudbranson was announced in the starting lineup.
In fact, we’ll call the crowd’s response “muted.”
Gudbranson played like the physical player we’ve seen in the past few weeks. But he also got burned on plays that led directly to two Colorado goals.
On the first, he had the puck on his stick while killing a penalty. But he softly cleared it off the boards and right to Barrie. A breath later, the puck was in the net.
Less than two minutes later, he got pushed easily out of the way setting up the Avs’ third goal. Gabriel Landeskog shoved Gudbranson out of the net-front area, before taking a pass from Nathan MacKinnon and punching it in.
It wasn’t a good look for the Canuc ks’ defence man whose extension was announced Tuesday morning.
GOLDOBIN CAN PLAY
It was a big night for the forward who has been among the Canucks’ oddest fits this season.
For whatever the reasons, Nikolay Goldobin has never looked comfortable playing with the Canucks and it’s unclear how much of that is on him and how much is on the lack of trust head coach Travis Green seems to have in him. That changed Tuesday. Goldobin set up a Brandon Sutter goal and scored one of his own.
On the power play, he showed some poise, waiting with the puck before picking a corner short side, top shelf. It was Goldobin’s third goal of the season.
THE CANUCKS MAY BE JUST FINE WITHOUT DORSETT
It probably shouldn’t surprise anyone Darren Archibald is excelling with Green. In Utica, he did everything for the Comets. He killed penalties. He scored on the power play. He was the team’s MVP.
If Green had his way, he probably would have started the season with the Canucks, but he didn’t get an NHL contract until this month.
He’s made the most of his opportunity. He’s taken the place of Derek Dorsett on the Canucks’ checking line and that’s where he scored his first goal of the season.
If this continues, there’s a great lesson to be learned by everyone. Archibald is tough, hard to play against, and he’s cheap.