GAME DAY PREVIEW: Game Twenty One- Canucks vs Winnipeg

VANCOUVER CANUCKS (8-11-1) vs WINNIPEG JETS (9-6-1)

ROGERS ARENA- VANCOUVER, BC

7:00PM PST

TV: SPORTSNET PACIFIC, TSN3. RADIO: SPORTSNET 650

OPPOSING BLOG: ARCTIC ICE HOCKEY

Getting 5 of a possible 8 points from the Flames was a step in the right direction, though it’s hardly time to start lauding the team for having turned the corner. The flaws of this team continue to be laid bare on a regular basis, but enough about Tyler Myers, let’s talk about some actual positive things. And no, I haven’t been taken hostage, so shush and let me do this.

First off, Brock Boeser is having himself a year. This is a good thing, because he’s having one of those kind of years you usually see from a guy who’s about to hit free agency. He’s still a year away from that. It sure feels like he’s playing with a bit of chip on his shoulder this season, maybe in response to all the trade chatter a few months back.

Secondly, we finally got one of those games we needed out of Braden Holtby in that 5-1 win over Calgary Wednesday night. And with the Jets coming in, expect Holtby to get the nod in at least one of these games, especially given his lifetime record over the Jets is something like 11-2-2 or some nonsense. Of course, that was with the Washington Capitals, but still he’s always played them well, and hockey’s one of those funny sports where a goaltender can make a team miserable for years. Maybe the Jets dominance over the Canucks is a thing of the past now?

And tonight the Canucks will be breaking out the Reverse Retro jerseys for the first time, and we get to see if these are as cursed as the rest of their alternates (except for the black skate jersey which is perfect and should be their fulltime jersey).

LINEUPS

Courtesy of nhl.com, here’s what we should see from these teams tonight:

Jets projected lineup

Kyle Connor — Mark Scheifele — Blake Wheeler

Andrew Copp — Paul Stastny — Nikolaj Ehlers

Mathieu Perreault — Adam Lowry — Mason Appleton

Jansen Harkins — Nate Thompson — Trevor Lewis

Josh Morrissey — Tucker Poolman

Derek Forbort — Neal Pionk

Nathan Beaulieu — Dylan DeMelo

Laurent Brossoit

Connor Hellebuyck

Scratched: Sami Niku, Kristian Vesalainen, Anton Forsberg

Injured: Pierre-Luc Dubois (lower body)

Canucks projected lineup

J.T. Miller — Elias Pettersson — Brock Boeser

Tanner Pearson — Bo Horvat — Nils Hoglander

Antoine Roussel — Brandon Sutter — Adam Gaudette

Loui Eriksson — Jay Beagle — Jake Virtanen

Alexander Edler — Nate Schmidt

Quinn Hughes — Jordie Benn

Olli Juolevi — Tyler Myers

Thatcher Demko

Braden Holtby

Scratched: Zack MacEwen, Jalen Chatfield, Jayce Hawryluk

Injured: Justin Bailey (upper body), Tyler Motte (undisclosed), Travis Hamonic (upper body), Micheal Ferland (head)

No changes for the Canucks, and Thatcher Demko slots in tonight. Travis Hamonic continues to skate, but is still on LTIR. Someone will have to be shuffled off to the taxi squad to make room for him when he returns, and it likely means that despite how well he’s been playing, Olli Juolevi will be scratched when Hamonic does return.

Pierre-Luc Dubois is still out for the Jets, but may be ready to return for Sunday’s contest.

GAME DAY CHATTER

GAME DAY BATTLE HYMN

Let’s go back in time, when metal was still in its infancy. Back when SLAYER didn’t suck, basically. From 1984’s ‘Haunting The Chapel’ EP, here’s ‘Chemical Warfare’.