Canucks: Pre-season blowouts don't imply something … more often than not

Article content material

Certain, Sunday’s 10-0 loss by the Vancouver Canucks to the Calgary Flames was simply pre-season.

Article content material

And, positive, the Canucks despatched a lineup crammed with children and depth gamers whereas the Flames had a lineup that featured numerous massive names.

Article content material

In lots of respects the Canucks despatched out an AHL roster in opposition to an NHL squad.

The expertise disparity does have to be put into consideration — however it’s nonetheless arduous to not sit again and ponder what such a rating line means. Shedding by 10 in any sport is a rarity. The Canucks haven’t misplaced by double-digits since 1984.

Their worst loss since then was by 9 in 1996; John Tortorella’s Canucks misplaced by eight in January 2014.

The Canucks’ youngsters on Sunday are in particular firm. Ought to head coach Rick Tocchet have dressed a stronger lineup on Sunday? Most likely. However he additionally would have anticipated extra from the gamers who did gown.

Article content material

As a substitute of sturdy performances, even in defeat, there have been quite a lot of regarding indicators, gamers who both weren’t ready or really aren’t as much as snuff. Whichever it was, neither can turn into a development, for participant or coach.

Right here’s a couple of issues to actually take into consideration that got here out of Sunday’s loss:

Šilovs’ actuality

Their goalie — Arturs Šilovs — faltered badly giving up unfortunate objectives but additionally objectives he made errors on or didn’t see in any respect. Did he deserve to remain in internet for seven objectives in opposition to? Perhaps not, however within the first sport of the pre-season a coach has a plan and that’s largely centred on gamers simply getting as much as sport pace, outcomes be damned.

However, once more, these outcomes are arduous to disregard.

Šilovs’ sport was a far cry from the heroics he pulled off the final time he was on the ice, when final spring he guided the Latvian nationwide crew to glory, successful bronze and being feted as a nationwide hero.

Article content material

Article content material

Is Šilovs the goalie who appeared misplaced on Sunday? Nearly actually not. However the skeptic would notice that it’s additionally very attainable he’s not fairly the goalie who carried out so admirably in his nationwide colors.

He’s nonetheless prospect. One sport doesn’t make a future.

Defensive depth

Then again, there’s the pairing of Jack Rathbone and Jett Woo. Neither had night time.

• Rathbone has already fallen properly down the left-side depth chart. And pretty much as good a personality as he’s, his on-ice efficiency is what the Canucks’ teaching employees have to assess, And, going again to his five-game cameo late final season, what Tocchet and his assistants, Adam Foote and Sergei Gonchar, have seen is a blueliner who struggles to defend and make puck selections at an NHL tempo.

Article content material

He’s been good within the AHL. It increasingly more seems to be possible he simply isn’t as much as NHL snuff. Rathbone was one of many Canucks’ extra skilled defenders on the night time. He didn’t seem like it.

• Woo’s statistics line was ugly on Sunday, going minus-four (not the minus-five listed on the scoresheet, as a result of the scorekeeper wrote down 44 when it was Akito Hirose, No. 41, on the ice for the sixth aim in opposition to). Woo struggled with positioning at instances and was burned badly defending Nazem Kadri on a impartial zone rush, resulting in a aim.

Woo has desires of taking part in within the NHL this season, however, on this efficiency, he has an extended approach to go.

• A 3rd blueliner on the roster bubble who did little to assist his case was Noah Juulsen. The veteran right-shot defenceman received first crack to skate with Quinn Hughes in coaching camp, however he’s removed from the front-runner and, after Sunday, he’s received quite a lot of work to do to maintain himself within the combine.

Article content material

He received beat badly by Jonathan Huberdeau and Kadri on goal-scoring performs for every — and if he’s going to make the NHL squad it’s possible as Hughes’ accomplice, and he can be going through forwards of this high quality on a regular basis.

Penalty killing

It’s an outdated chorus now, however the Canucks have gotten to discover a approach to kill penalties with consistency.

Nonetheless on first blush, the Canucks have quite a lot of work to do. Now, a lot of the gamers within the lineup on Sunday received’t be NHL regulars this season, however outdoors of Woo, the fellows deployed to kill penalties final night time did all play within the NHL final 12 months.

Dakota Joshua and Pius Suter ought to have pretty distinguished roles on the penalty kill this season, Juulsen, Matt Irwin and Nils Åman perhaps too.

That is to say: They need to have had some sense of what they have been doing Sunday night time. They shouldn’t have appeared as hapless as they did in making an attempt to maintain the opposing energy play to the skin.

Article content material

They gave away seven pictures in 5:11 of energy play time, two of these for objectives.

Their defensive scheme struggled to remain secure.

At the very least there’s Höglander

Nils Höglander was simply in regards to the lone vivid spot Sunday and his probabilities of beginning the season because the left-winger on Elias Pettersson’s line — Andrei Kuzmenko on the opposite wing — stay sturdy.

He was the most effective participant on the Abbotsford Canucks on the finish of final season and his activity is evident: work arduous, be aggressive on the forecheck and be accountable in his personal finish.

“He’s simply received to be taught you could’t attempt to stickhandle by means of,” Tocchet mentioned Sunday. “Don’t get pissed off and attempt to stickhandle by means of guys, you’ve simply received to remain in your self. That’s the subsequent stage for him however I do like his effort.”

Article content material

[email protected]

twitter.com/risingaction

Bookmark our web site and help our journalism: Don’t miss the information you could know — add VancouverSun.com and TheProvince.com to your bookmarks and join our newsletters right here.

You can even help our journalism by changing into a digital subscriber: For simply $14 a month, you will get limitless, ad-lite get limitless, ad-lite entry to The Vancouver Solar, The Province, Nationwide Publish and 13 different Canadian information websites. Assist us by subscribing immediately: The Vancouver Solar | The Province.

Article content material