The Vancouver Canucks are back in action on Saturday night for the second game of a back-to-back, as they host the Minnesota Wild on Hockey Night in Canada.
Conor Garland returned to the Canucks’ lineup to begin the homestand on Friday night after missing the final two games of the team’s last road trip. Garland led Canucks’ forwards with 22:40 of ice time in the game. He had four scoring chances in his return.
Saturday’s game will be the Canucks’ sixth back-to-back of the season and the second game of a four-game homestand, which will be their final games at Rogers Arena before the Christmas break.
Quick Hits on the Competition
- The Wild have been one of the hottest teams in the league over the past month. After beginning the season with a 3-6-3 record, they’ve gone 12-2-2, including a seven-game winning streak.
- Matt Boldy has been the hottest Wild player of late. He has scored 10 goals in his last 16 games and is up to 15 goals and 14 assists for 29 points in 28 games played this season.
- Kirill Kaprizov leads the Wild with 31 points (17g-14a) this year. Connor McDavid (22:47) is the only forward who is getting more ice time per game than Kaprizov (22:23) this season.
- Jesper Wallstedt has been electric between the pipes. He holds an 8-0-2 record with a .944% save percentage, a 1.74 goals-against average, and has four shutouts in 10 starts this season.
The Story: Get a Dirty Goal
After controlling much of the play on Friday night but not seeing that control translate into a win, Head Coach Adam Foote wants to see more traffic around the net and get a dirty goal from his players.
“If we can’t get it from a shot, we have to go hack and whack and put the goalie in the net,” said Foote following Friday’s game. “And that’s maybe a little bit more of a dirty, aggressive mindset around the net. Even if we get into some battles and start a war there, that’s probably what’s going to change.”
Foote noted that his team needs to find a way to score some goals and said that his goal right now is to stay positive while showing and teaching his players.
“It’s my belief, we’ve got to keep going. We’ve got to keep going and keep showing them why we have to continue to do it. Change a couple of things. Get better on the net, get a little dirtier, but yeah, that’s the way you do it. That’s the way it works,” said Foote.
Canucks’ Top Performers over the Last Five Games
Evander Kane: 2g-1a-3p
Tom Willander: 0g-3a-3p
Filip Hronek: 0g-3a-3p
Linus Karlsson: 2g-0a-2p
Brock Boeser: 1g-1a-2p
Conor Garland: 1g-1a-2p
When and Where to Watch
Saturday’s game is at 7:00 p.m. PT, and you can watch the game on Hockey Night in Canada or listen to Brendan Batchelor’s radio call on Sportsnet 650 and the Sportsnet Radio Network.
