Canucks Game Day Preview: Remember the last time Pittsburgh came to town?

Do you remember where you were on December 4th, 2021.

On that fateful night, the Canucks were defeated 4-1 by the Pittsburgh Penguins. They were outshot 44-23 and looked dreadful throughout most of the contest.

Boos reigned down. A jersey was thrown on the ice.

The next day, Jim Benning and Travis Green were dismissed.

If that was a blessing in disguise, that blessing looks awfully muted right now.

Here’s hoping that tonight’s contest is a little closer — and less cataclysmic — compared to the last time these teams met at Rogers Arena.

PITTSBURGH PENGUINS (4-2-1) vs. VANCOUVER CANUCKS (1-5-2)

ROGERS ARENA, VANCOUVER BC. 7:00 PM PST

TV: SN PACIFIC/SN1/SN360. RADIO: SPORTSNET 650

OPPOSING BLOG: PENSBURG

I know we started off this preview on such an optimistic note, but this feels like a schedule loss for the Canucks.

They’re playing in the second of back-to-backs, with their backup, Spencer Martin, likely to start.

Pittsburgh on the other hand, hasn’t played last Tuesday. They’ll also be looking to get off the schneid after dropping two straight in regulation to the Calgary Flames and Edmonton Oilers.

Before those contests, they hadn’t lost in regulation, beginning the season with a 4-0-1 record.

PROJECTED LINES

VANCOUVER

Forwards

JT Miller — Bo Horvat — Conor Garland

Ilya Mikheyev — Elias Pettersson — Andrei Kuzmenko

Tanner Pearson — Sheldon Dries — Nils Hoglander

Dakota Joshua — Nils Aman — Vasily Podkolzin

Defence

Oliver Ekman-Larsson — Tyler Myres

Jack Rathbone — Kyle Burroughs

Guillaume Brisebois — Luke Schenn

Starting Goalie: Spencer Martin (expected)

Backup: Thatcher Demko

Scratched: Jack Studnicka, Ethan Bear, Noah Juulsen

Injured: Quinn Hughes (lower body), Tucker Poolman (undisclosed), Travis Dermott (concussion), Riley Stillman (undisclosed), Brock Boeser (undisclosed), Curtis Lazar (undisclosed)

Will Lockwood was sent to the minors earlier today in order to make room on the roster for Ethan Bear.

No update has been made on JT Miller’s availability after the shot block lat night. It’s fair to assume he’ll play until the team makes an update otherwise.

PITTSBURGH

Forwards

Bryan Rust — Sidney Crosby — Rickard Rakell

Danton Heinen — Evgeni Malkin — Jeff Carter

Brock McGinn — Sam Poulin — Kasperi Kapanen

Drake Caggiula — Ryan Poehling — Josh Archibald

Defence

Brian Dumoulin — Kris Letang

Marcus Pettersson — Jeff Petry

Pierre-Olivier Joseph — Jan Rutta

Starting Goaltender: Tristan Jarry (expected)

Backup: Casey DeSmith

Scratched: Chad Ruhwedel

Injured: Jason Zucker (undisclosed), Jake Guentzel (undisclosed), Teddy Blueger (upper-body)

Jake Guentzel was at the Penguins optional morning skate, but it sounds like he won’t play tonight. That would be a massive break for the Canucks.

Not only is Guentzel a damn good hockey player, but he’s been an absolute Canuck killer. Guentzel had three goals and four points the last time Pittsburgh played at Rogers Arena.

For his career, Guentzel had 12 goals and 19 points in just 10 games against the Canucks.

GAME DAY BATTLE HYMN

Hey, it might look like a scheduled loss, but the Canucks did show signs of life last night.

That’s why they play the games.