VANCOUVER – For most of the last century or so, earthquake scientists have warned that the big one is coming on the West Coast. Anxious observers of the Vancouver Canucks have worried for almost as long as the seismologists.
If the Canucks really have been playing above themselves this season and are due to crack open at some point, this would probably be a good time to crawl under your dining table, make sure there is plenty of bottled water and Twinkies in the pantry, and pray you took care of that little earthquake rider in the home insurance policy.
It’s not just that the Canucks were beaten 4-1 Thursday by the Philadelphia Flyers in Vancouver’s first game AB – after Bo. It’s that the six-week injury to centre Bo Horvat, the Canucks’ best player, is a huge chunk of adversity piled on top of several little pieces that have quietly accumulated.
With Brandon Sutter already out with an upper-body injury, the Canucks are now without their top two centres. (Yes, just like the Anaheim Ducks but without the Stanley Cup-calibre supporting cast). Vancouver goaltending and power play, like its real estate, are due market corrections.
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Emotionally, the Canucks have been depleted by the shock retirement of beloved teammate Derek Dorsett, whom they also miss on the ice. And physically, the team is trying to recover from a November schedule that saw them play 10 of 12 games on the road while spending 20 of 24 nights away from home over three different time zones.
Emotions and goalie Jacob Markstrom carried the Canucks to home wins Saturday and Tuesday against the Toronto Maple Leafs and Carolina Hurricanes, but the fractured foot suffered late in the latter game by Horvat doesn’t energize anyone, except maybe Alex Burmistrov, the extra forward who got back into the lineup against the Flyers.
Without Horvat, Canuck penalty killing surrendered power-play goals to Flyers Claude Giroux and Shayne Gostisbehere – after offensive-zone penalties by Canucks Daniel Sedin and Sven Baertschi. The previously sizzling power play, without Horvat, was 0-for-2. The line matchups, without Horvat, were tougher for Danny and Hank Sedin who, with Loui Eriksson, have led the team in scoring the last two weeks.
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“Players get tired,” Canucks coach Travis Green said after the morning skate. “When you’re on the road for 20 out of 24 days. … To the average fan we stay in nice hotels, travel in nice planes, but until you play and have gone through it, it’s tiring. But that is part of the NHL, when teams are on the road for 20 out of 24 days, there is a good chance you are going to have less energy.
“We gave the team a mental break [Wednesday] – a total optional whether you came to the rink or not. That was strictly to get re-focused and re-energized, and hopefully we’ve got more energy in our game tonight.”
The Canucks dominated the first seven minutes but couldn’t get a puck past Flyers goalie Brian Elliott despite a 9-0 advantage in shots. Then the Flyers, who had beaten the Edmonton Oilers 4-2 the previous night, took over the game and by the middle of the second period it was 3-0 Philadelphia.
The Canucks did manage to push after Brock Boeser chipped in a rebound to make it 3-1 with 20 seconds remaining in the second period, but the Flyers were happy to defend and probably should have extended their lead on one of their many outnumbered rushes before Wayne Simmonds scored into an empty net.
Of the adversity piled before the Canucks, defenceman Michael Del Zotto said: “That’s part of a hockey season. There are going to be injuries and we’ve had a pretty gruelling schedule. I’m not making excuses, but it hasn’t been easy on our club starting with [pre-season in] China and a pretty rough month in November. Obviously, Dorse is a tough one, you never want to see that, but the other guys will be coming back eventually and it gives guys an opportunity to step up and take those minutes.
“Tonight, we just allowed their power play to take over. That group there has been together numerous years and if you give them that many looks, you’re not going to be successful.”
Power plays were 6-2 in favour of the Flyers, which Green found a little odd since the Canucks finished ahead 37-26 in shots.
“I loved our start,” Green said. “I didn’t like that we took three penalties in the last 10 minutes [of the first period]. We lost the momentum with three penalties in the last half of the period.”
“It’s not a tired group,” Markstrom insisted. “Look at the game today. I don’t think we looked very tired.”
No, they just looked like they couldn’t score or kill penalties.
The good news is Sutter is supposed to be back in about a week, the bad news is the Canucks were hoping the same thing a week ago.
In the meantime, the Canucks have tough road games this weekend in Calgary and Winnipeg before opening a difficult four-game homestand against the Nashville Predators next Wednesday.
Is that a tremor you feel?
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