VANCOUVER -- Rick Tocchet doesn’t mind seeing the Vancouver Canucks listed as underdogs against the Edmonton Oilers in the Western Conference Second Round despite having home-ice advantage and sweeping the regular-season series.
The Canucks have taken pleasure in dispelling narratives all season, from qualifying for the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time in four years to eliminating the Nashville Predators in six games in the first round despite losing No.1 goalie Thatcher Demko because of an injury.
“I love being doubted,” the Vancouver coach said at an optional practice on Sunday. “At the start of the year, if you asked, ‘Is Vancouver going to make the playoffs?’ A lot of people said no or a bubble team. So, we were underdogs there. As the season went on, when are they going to fall? Now, same thing. People said the Preds are going to win. ... I just think we kind of like that underdog role and I think players should embrace it. I really do.”
Tocchet does not, however, think his players can take much from their regular-season success against the Oilers. The Canucks won all four games, but three came before Edmonton fired coach Jay Woodcroft and assistant Dave Manson on Nov. 12, when they were 3-9-1, and replaced them with Kris Knoblauch and Hall of Fame defenseman Paul Coffey, respectively.
Edmonton went 46-18-5 under Knoblauch and Coffey and finished second in the Pacific Division (49-27-6), five points behind Vancouver (50-23-9).
“Since then, they've been the best team in the League,” Tocchet said, highlighting the Oilers' 16-game winning streak from Dec. 21-Feb. 26, and forward Connor McDavid’s 11 assists in the first round against the Los Angeles Kings, which the Oilers won in five games.
“They shatter records. It's a different team and they just got off to a bad start early.”
The Canucks opened the season with an 8-1 home win against the Oilers before sweeping a home-and-home series with a 4-3 victory in Edmonton three days later. Vancouver defeated them at home again 6-2 on Nov. 6, less than a week before the coaching change.
The fourth win came in Edmonton on April 13, a 3-1 victory that helped the Canucks secure their first division title since 2013, but the Oilers were missing McDavid, who was out with a lower-body injury.
“They're going to be hungry to play us for obvious reasons,” forward J.T. Miller said.
Edmonton made quick work of the Kings in the first round, eliminating them for the third straight season. The Oilers’ power play went 9-for-20 in that series, and that doesn’t include two more goals scored shortly after penalties against Los Angeles had expired.
McDavid leads the playoffs with 12 points (one goal, 11 assists), Leon Draisaitl is tied for second with 10 points (five goals, five assists), and defenseman Evan Bouchard is tied for third with nine (one goal, eight assists).
Miller and Tocchet discussed the unique challenges presented by McDavid, Draisaitl and the Oilers' power play, but Miller doesn’t think the Canucks have to change the overall approach that got them to this point despite the doubters.
The Canucks tied for fifth in the NHL in goals against during the regular season (221), and allowed 12 against the Predators while killing 20 of 22 Nashville power plays.
“You could talk about playing defense and shutting whoever down, but when we play Canucks hockey, we're in your face and play in their end more than in our own,” Miller said. “You're not going to eliminate all the looks when you play a guy like Connor, but we've proven this year when we focus and play our game and worry about ourselves, we can have the results. So, try to keep it 5-on-5 and bear down and win your 1-on-1 battles. The message doesn't really change.”
