Even-strength scoring continues to concern
Canucks muster only a man-advantage marker as Price and Habs shut the door
MONTREAL 3, VANCOUVER 1
The great even-strength scoring debate can easily irritate.
As the Vancouver Canucks gathered themselves Tuesday for a critical five-game home stand, their lack of 5-on-5 goal production moved to the front-burner of concern. A 20th ranking is only going to make that long road to the playoffs more rocky.
And because there’s a skill and will element connected to evenstrength success, any suggestion that the Canucks might lack the latter isn’t going to sit well with the players or the coach.
“When our team is on, we look fast and aggressive and generate chances throughout our lineup and I don’t think we go out and just skill the puck around the ice,” said Travis Green. “We score by getting pucks to the net — like a lot of the league — and if you’re suggesting they’re not playing hard enough, that’s a long stretch. Our 5-on-5 game is coming.”
Here’s what we learned as the Canucks had ample opportunity to score at even strength but gave up two third-period power play goals in a 3-1 loss to the Montreal Canadiens:
MARKSTROM BUMPED, THEN DESERTED
Jacob Markstrom knew a lot heading into Tuesday.
He knew Thatcher Demko is out with the concussion and that he would have to shoulder the goaltending load. He knew the opposition was going to target his glove hand, but he didn’t know he was going to be bumped in the process.
And he didn’t think he would surrender two power play goals in less than two minutes in the third period as his teammates paraded to the penalty box.
But first, that bump in the night. When it looked like Joel Armia had given the Canadiens a 2-1 lead in the second period when he easily deposited a loose puck, a successful goalie-interference challenge ruled that Artturi Lehkonen kept Markstrom from establishing position after incidental contact from behind from Oscar Fantenberg. However, the Canadiens struck twice in less than two minutes of the third period to put the game away. Tomas Tatar had all kinds of time to dangle down low on Markstrom as Jay Beagle was late on the check and the winger picked the short side at 1:51. Shea Weber then pinched down from the point and took a cross-ice feed to snap an Armia offering past a diving Markstrom.
MILLER SETS EXAMPLE AT EVEN-STRENGTH
J.T. Miller has one goal in his last nine games, but the winger could have potted a pair of 5-on-5 goals Tuesday. He has 13 goals and seven have come at even strength, so you knew the effort was going to be there.
Miller was foiled twice in the second period. The first chance came off a corner shot and a Carey Price rebound that he nearly backhanded past the Canadiens stopper. The second came off a partial break when Miller tried to out-wait the goalie and was a denied with a forehand effort.
At 26, you expect that kind of effort from a veteran, but Elias Pettersson and Jake Virtanen have eight even-strength goalies apiece. That’s skill and will.
An even-strength effort that would have made a huge difference was Adam Gaudette being denied his second goal of the night. The centre hustled hard to the slot to get to a Josh Leivo shot and whipped the rebound home. But a video review determined that Leivo was offside on the rush as he crossed the blue-line.
THEATRE OF THE BIZARRE
Bo Horvat has had pucks go off his stick and trickle wide of the open net. He has had pucks go off his body with the same result and he has even been foiled on a clearcut breakaway.
All this has occurred on home ice and the Canucks captain has yet to score in 16 games at Rogers Arena. Despite 33 shots and ample chances — including five shots against Carolina last Thursday — he has served up a big zero bagel. How bizarre is that?
“It is,” said the centre, who didn’t have a shot Tuesday. “I don’t know if it’s the matchups or if I’m getting more lucky on the road — I don’t know what it is. I should have a lot more than I do now — definitely.”
POWER PLAY COULD HAVE SHOWN WAY
The Canucks were 1-for-12 with the man-advantage the previous four games and the league’s fourthranked unit managed to score once on four chances Tuesday.
After Markstrom was forced to make a short-handed stop on Lehkonen, it was Gaudette who picked the short side high to open scoring on what could have shaped up to be a more memorable night.