GAME DAY PREVIEW/THREAD: Canucks vs Winnipeg- Oct 3, 2021

VANCOUVER CANUCKS (1-2-0) vs WINNIPEG JETS (1-1-0)

ROGERS ARENA, VANCOUVER, BC

4:00PM PST

TV: SPORTSNET. RADIO: SPORTSNET 650

OPPOSING BLOG: ARCTIC ICE HOCKEY

Nearly all preseason games mean absolutely nothing. This one? It’s gonna be special, there’s no doubt about it. The Vancouver Canucks are at home with fans in the building for the first time since March 2020, a 5-4 shootout win over the New York Islanders. A lot has changed since then, and while we’re still not back to normal, it’s really going to be something to hear and see faces in the crowd cheering them on tonight.

And while we’re probably still at least a game away from seeing Elias Pettersson and Quinn Hughes in the lineup, one guy we won’t see for the rest of the preseason is Brock Boeser. In a press conference today, GM Jim Benning announced that Boeser will miss the rest of the preseason with an undisclosed injury but will be ready for Game 1 on October 13.

The Canucks also won’t be getting Brandon Sutter and Tyler Motte back anytime soon, either. Sutter is going to have some tests done to determine why he’s suffering from fatigue symptoms, and Motte is still recovering from offseason surgery. There’s also no update on the status of Travis Hamonic, with Benning saying it’s a “day to day” situation.

LINEUPS

Very much an AHL-flavoured lineup for the Jets tonight, while the Canucks look to be a little more like what we can expect to start the season. It’ll be Jaroslav Halak vs Mikhail Berdin in goal tonight, with Michael DiPietro and Eric Comrie as the backups.

GAME DAY CHATTER

GAME DAY BATTLE HYMN

Feelin’ more and more like meaningful hockey is comin’ back, and so here’s a great live version of a song you might have heard before. CLUTCH’s ‘Electric Worry’ was the Canucks goal song a few years back, and I wouldn’t complain if it returned. Enjoy the game, folks!

Go Canucks Go!