Riding a hot streak to close out the road trip, the Vancouver Canucks are in Dallas to face the Central Division-leading Stars.
The Canucks have not lost in regulation since December 5th and hold a 6-0-1 record over their last seven games. The team is now tied for the league lead in wins with 22 and is one point back of the Vegas Golden Knights for first place in the NHL.
Thursday’s game will be the final one on a four-game road trip and the Stars present a tough foe as the team with the best record of the four opponents on the trip.
The Stars have the second-best penalty kill in the league – holding an 86.7% conversion while a man short. Defencemen Esa Lindell and Jani Hakanpää are horses on the penalty kill and will be the first pair of defencemen over the boards for the Stars when their penalty kill is called upon.
Offensively, the Stars are led by veteran Joe Pavelski. The 39-year-old has 13 goals and 16 assists for 29 points through 30 games. Pavelski is playing right wing on the Stars’ top line alongside Jason Robertson and Roope Hintz.
On defence, Miro Heiskanen is the name you’ll be hearing the most, and that’s because he is top-five in the NHL for average ice time per game. The 24-year-old defenceman is averaging 25:22 this year and has picked up four goals and 17 assists on the season. His 21 points put him in the top 20 for scoring from a defenceman so far this season.
In terms of young and exciting talent, Wyatt Johnston is the man on that case for the Stars. The 20-year-old centre plays on the Stars' third line and sees time on the second power play unit. Johnston has nine goals and 10 assists for 19 points in 30 games. It’s hard to believe but Johnston has already played in 112 NHL games and as we mentioned earlier, he is still just 20 years young.
Over the past 10 games, the hottest two Stars aren’t first-line players. Instead, Mason Marchment and Matt Duchene are the leading men – each of the two second-liners have picked up 10 points over their last 10 games and Marchment has had the hot stick with six goals over that 10-game stretch.
Duchene and Marchment are joined by Tyler Seguin on a second line that has outscored their opposition by a 21-11 count this season.
Quick Hits on the Competition:
- The Stars’ starting netminder Jake Oettinger is currently injured and that means that journeyman Scott Wedgewood will be in the crease. Wedgewood has an impressive 7-1-2 record on the year and has a .906% save percentage.
- Forwards will have to be aware of Hakanpää, the 6’6”, right-shot defenceman who leads the Stars in hits with 59 on the season.
- The Stars have five players with double-digit goals this season (Pavelski has 13 while Robertson, Duchene, Hintz, and Marchment each have 10).
- BC-born Jamie Benn has been excellent in the faceoff circle this season. He’s won 59.6% of his faceoffs.
The Canucks have been picking up points in bundles lately, their third line has been a big reason why and the combination of Dakota Joshua, Teddy Blueger and Conor Garland has now combined for 11 points over their last four games.
J.T. Miller sits third in league scoring with 45 points while Quinn Hughes and Elias Pettersson are tied for sixth with 41 points.
The goaltending duo of Thatcher Demko and Casey DeSmith has a combined save percentage of .921% on the year and after DeSmith started on Tuesday against the Nashville Predators, it’s likely that we see Demko in net for Thursday’s game.
Hottest Canucks over the last five:
Brock Boeser: 5g-0a-5p
J.T. Miller: 0g-5a-5p
Quinn Hughes: 0g-5a-5p
Dakota Joshua: 3g-1a-4p
Teddy Blueger: 2g-2a-4p
Thursday’s game is another earlier start for those of us here in the Pacific Time Zone. The game is scheduled for 5:00 pm PT.
You can watch the game on Sportsnet or listen to the radio broadcast with the wonderful Brendan Batchelor on Sportsnet 650.