Canucks will try to tame the Wild this evening
Posted November 29, 2016 12:50 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – The Canucks begin a three game homestand this evening, up against the Minnesota Wild. Vancouver will need a strong effort from it’s depleted blueline. Alex Edler will not be in the lineup after undergoing surgery to repair a fractured index finger on his left hand. The injury will keep the defenceman out for 4-to-6 weeks. Chris Tanev is nearing a return, but is also out this evening.
Coach Willie Desjardins acknowledges the difficulties of dealing with such big injuries, but he says other players need to step up and seize the opportunity.
“We are counting the days until Tanev and Jannik Hansen are back. It is one game at a time. Every game you play, you can win. We have to come out with a good effort from everybody. Obviously our defencemen are very young, so our forwards are going to have to do a little bit more coming back.”
The top pairing for the Canucks will be Troy Stecher and Luca Sbisa. Sbisa says he is ready for the challenge.
“Obviously missing those two is not a good thing. They are our number one and two guys back there logging a lot of minutes, so the other guys will have to step up. We are pretty young back there, but so far the young guys are playing like the old guys, so we have to keep that up.”
The Wild are kicking off a four-game, ten-day road trip. You can expect a low scoring affair between the two teams. Vancouver ranks 29th in the league in goals per game, while Minnesota has allowed the fewest goals in the NHL this season.
Erik Gudbranson says Vancouver will need a huge effort.
“It is going to be a tough night. They have a really solid veteran defensive core that is big, physical and moves the puck well. They have always been a tough to play against. We are going to have to put pucks in the right places. Puck management tonight is going to be huge. We will need to win our battles at the blueline. I think turnovers against this team will be very difficult to deal with.
Vancouver has recalled Alex Biega from his conditioning stint in the AHL with the Utica Comets. He will not be in the lineup this evening. The Canucks also sent Alex Grenier back to the Comets. He did not get in to the lineup during his trip up to the NHL.
The puck drops at 7 p.m. and you can watch the game on Sportsnet.
