Canucks Take Game 3 in Nashville Beating Predators 2-1

The Vancouver Canucks take a 2-1 series lead on the Nashville Predators after another physical battle.

The two teams swapped blocked shot stats between games two and three, the Canucks had 30 blocked shots in game three, compared to Nashville’s 11, but game two Nashville led that same category 30-8.

Head Coach Rick Tocchet liked his team’s work in the defensive zone and seeing his team have success on the power play, going 2-for-3 on the man advantage.

“The Boeser goal, that’s the big one, it gets us a two-goal lead. They [Predators] score and they’re making a push. I’m a big believer in that the percentages really [matter] when the pressure is on. That’s when you want your power plays to be the best,” Tocchet said.

Ian Cole, who had some big, blocked shots at the end of the game said he liked how the Canucks started the game and they had a bend but don’t break mentality. He also mentioned that Casey DeSmith had a strong start to help them set the tone for the game.

“Blocking shots is a non-negotiable part of this time of year. They’ve done a great job of that as the first two games went along and just the way this game went, that’s what we had to do, that’s the position we were in. They were pressing at the end, we were killing some penalties and it comes with the territory so we’re happy to do it. Whatever it takes to get a win and try to help Casey out as best we can,” Cole said.

DeSmith got his first playoff win, stopping 29 of the 30 shots he faced, and displaying some swift acrobatics while doing it.

Have a look at the sequence captured below.

J.T. Miller echoed Cole’s reaction to DeSmith’s presence between the pipes. 

“For him to step in and come up with a performance like that, so timely, is really big for our group. We always talk about how much confidence we have in him and he showed us today when he gets his chance why he belongs in there and I’m very happy for him,” Miller said.

The Canucks PK was a perfect 5-for-5 and Miller talked about how big the PK was in the game, but also reflected on how good it’s been all year.

“The second half of the year I haven’t been on as much. I go on for a draw or two, but those guys that are getting the call regularly are doing an unbelievable job for us. They take so much pride in that area of the rink and it’s just nice to see after the last couple of years of how much our penalty kill kind of failed and let us down sometimes, it’s nice to see the hard work these guys are putting in, the buy in, and the shot blocks. They have their pairs and they have chemistry and it’s awesome, we need that so bad,” Miller said.

Game Summary

In the first, with the Canucks on the man advantage, J.T. Miller snapped a shot just above the left faceoff circle striking the netting.

The Canucks took a 1-0 lead into the first break.

Finding themselves on the power play for the third time, Vancouver made a tic tac toe play from Quinn Hughes to Miller on the wing who found Brock Boeser with a tape-to-tape pass for a tap-in. 

Going into the second break, Vancouver was up 2-0.

In the third, the Canucks showed their penalty killing prowess, stopping a 5-on-3 opportunity for 21 seconds and Ian Cole blocking multiple shots including taking a puck to the shoulder point blank and sprawling to block a puck with his visor to help keep the score 2-0.

Nashville winger Luke Evangelista scored late in the third to close the gap to one goal, but the Canucks battled through the final horn for the 2-1 win.

Game four takes place in Nashville on Sunday, April 28th at 2 p.m. PT.