GAME DAY PREVIEW: Canucks vs Seattle Kraken

VANCOUVER CANUCKS vs SEATTLE KRAKEN

ROGERS ARENA, VANCOUVER, BC

6:30PM PST

TV: SPORTSNET PACIFIC, SN1. RADIO: SPORTSNET 650

OPPOSING BLOG: DAVY JONES’ LOCKER ROOM

While there’s legitimate reason for optimism for the first time in what seems like eons, this preseason is feeling rather familiar thus far. It started with dual split squad losses against Calgary on Sunday, and has shifted into mid-season injury mode before we even made it to October. I’ve said it before, being a Canucks fan is not for the feint of heart.

The news Monday that Brock Boeser will miss the season opener after having surgery on his wrist. Add in D Travis Dermott and new F Ilya Mikheyev, and all of a sudden the Canucks are looking like their planned opening day roster is going to look different then they had hoped, but there was some good news earlier today concerning Mikheyev.

The Canucks will be looking to shake off a rather inauspicious start Sunday night, as their split squads lost 3-2 in OT at home and 4-0 on the road to the Calgary Flames. Their opponent tonight, as well as Saturday night will be the Seattle Kraken, as the budding rivalry gets another chance to grow.

Unlike their performance at the Expansion Draft (and most of the regular season, if we’re being fair), the Kraken had a good summer in terms of improving their roster, bringing in Andre Burakovsky and Oliver Bjorkstrand, as well as having the good fortune of having Shane Wright, thought by some to be a lock to go first overall in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft, fall to the fourth spot, giving them a future one-two punch with Wright and Matty Beniers, and that is definitely going to help this rivalry heat up.

They won’t be making the post-season yet, but they will be harder to play against this season, as they’ve shown so far this week, rattling off 3-0 wins over the Edmonton Oilers on Monday and the Flames on Tuesday night.

LINEUPS

Definitely a lot of AHL’ers in that Kraken lineup, as they’re missing a number of their more well known players. The Canucks meanwhile will have Elias Pettersson, JT MIller, Quinn Hughes, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, and Thatcher Demko in the lineup, though with three goalies dressed, I would expect to see a rotation scenario where they all get a period of playing time.

PREGAME CHATTER

GAME DAY BATTLE HYMN

While a lot of MEGADETH’s output after the past couple decades haven’t exactly lived up to their previous releases, their new one contains a ton of the snarl, speed and furious fret work we had come to expect from Dave Mustaine. The band has gone through a number of changes, but this album sits well next to ‘Rust In Peace’, ‘Peace Sells... But Who’s Buying?’ and other earlier MEGADETH discs. Check out ‘Night Stalkers’ (with a guest appearance from ICE-T) off ‘The Sick, The Dying... And The Dead!”

Enjoy the game, folks! Go Canucks Go!