The Vancouver Canucks have one final game ahead of their holiday break and welcome the San Jose Sharks to town on Monday for a 6:00 p.m. game.
Monday night’s game will be the first of four games broadcasted on Amazon Prime this season.
The Sharks come into Monday following a 3-2 overtime loss to the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday night. They have a quick two-game road trip through Edmonton and Vancouver before their holiday break.
With an 11-19-6 record, the Sharks sit seventh in the Pacific Division and are the second-worst team in the league at preventing goals while sitting in 19th for scoring them.
The team is made up of young talent and some veteran presences scattered throughout the lineup. We will see local kid and first overall pick in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft, Macklin Celebrini play his first NHL game at Rogers Arena on Monday night.
Celebrini missed the first matchup of the season between the Canucks and Sharks and will likely have a bunch of friends and family members in attendance on Monday night.
The 18-year-old forward is third in rookie scoring with 23 points on the year. He is tied with Matvei Michkov for goals from a rookie with 11 on the season.
The Canucks are looking to bounce back after three consecutive losses. They did earn a point in two of their three losses but now sit with a 16-10-7 record.
These two teams have already played once this season and the Canucks took a 3-2 win in San Jose. Pius Suter had a pair of goals in the game, including the game-winner in the final minute of the third period.
Quick Hits on the Competition
- Mikael Granlund leads the Sharks in scoring and is just shy of a point-per-game player. He has scored 11 goals and added 21 assists for 32 points in 34 games.
- Jake Walman leads the defence corps with an average ice time of 22:50. He has five goals and 20 assists from the backend this season and features on the Sharks’ top power play unit.
- Former Canuck Tyler Toffoli is sixth on the Sharks with 22 points. He is part of a six-way tie for the lead in power play goals on the Sharks. Granlund, Toffoli, Celebrini Fabian Zetterlund, William Eklund, and Alex Wennberg have three power play goals apiece.
- Alexandar Georgiev and Yaroslav Askarov are the goaltending tandem for the Sharks following the trade of Mackenzie Blackwood earlier this month.
The Story: Suter and Blueger Duo Earning Heavy Penalty Killing Minutes
The Canucks have killed off 17 of their last 19 penalties and 12 of their last 13.
Head Coach Rick Tocchet likes the way his shorthanded units have played of late but still wants to see his players be more disciplined and not find themselves in the box.
“We’ve got to stop taking penalties. It's too many penalties,” said Tocchet. “We’ve got to start taking pressure off ourselves. You can't give power plays, especially early in the game, because then, some guys hit the bench, they don't penalty kill, then they're sitting for four minutes. So, we have to clean up the discipline.”
The forward duo of Pius Suter and Teddy Blueger are typically the first two forwards over the bench to kill penalties for the Canucks. Both are smart players who feed off each other’s play while shorthanded.
“They’ve played really good all year,” said Tocchet about the Blueger-Suter duo on the penalty kill. “They’ve got a connection and chemistry. They’ve really helped us on the PK.”
The Blueger-Suter duo has played a total of 57:01 together on the penalty kill this season and have been on the ice for four power play goals against in that time. When you consider those two matching up against top power play units and only allowing four goals in 57 minutes, it is quite a feat for the two forwards, and they will hope to continue having success as the season progresses.
Canucks’ Top Performers over the Last Five Games
Quinn Hughes: 1g-5a-6p
Kiefer Sherwood: 3g-1a-4p
Danton Heinen: 1g-2a-3p
Brock Boeser: 2g-0a-2p
Teddy Blueger: 1g-1a-2p
When and Where to Watch
Monday night’s game is a 6:00 p.m. PT start, and you can watch it on Amazon Prime or listen along to the radio call with Brendan Batchelor on Sportsnet 650 and the Sportsnet Radio Network.
