Bruce Boudreau was once fearful about appearing the St. Louis Blues the similar goalie two times. The Vancouver Canucks trainer will have to be fearful about seeing the similar St. Louis netminder 3 times.
Ville Husso stopped 35 of 36 pictures Monday because the Blues soured what have been an excellent Canucks street travel with a 4-1 win in St. Louis. The 27-year-old Finn, who has driven Jordan Binnington out of the crease because the Blues’ starter, stopped 38 of 39 pictures towards the Canucks all the way through a 3-1 win in Vancouver on Jan. 23.
The Blues could make it a season sweep towards the Canucks when the groups play Wednesday at Rogers Area.
After beginning two times in six weeks, Jaroslav Halak began for the second one time in six days and surrendered two aims at the first 8 pictures he confronted as Vancouver, desperately seeking to keep within the playoff race, did not care for the engaged and resilient shape that allowed them to take a shocking 5 out of six issues in street video games final week towards the Colorado Avalanche, Minnesota Wild and Dallas Stars.
In explaining his goaltending selection, Boudreau mentioned he didn’t wish to play the similar goalie in consecutive video games towards the Blues, which means that most sensible Canuck Thatcher Demko shall be again in web on Wednesday. Monday wasn’t Halak’s fault.
“I did not assume we have been excellent this night,” Boudreau instructed journalists. “We got here out flat within the first duration, were given at the back of two, which gave them a little bit existence. I assumed our 2nd duration was once higher, however we did not get rewarded for it. After which they ranking within the first shift within the 3rd duration.
“I simply did not assume we had sufficient guys taking part in with the sense of urgency this is wanted at this level of the season.”
ANOTHER FALSE START
The Canucks have received much more than they’ve misplaced below Boudreau. However their trail to defeat has change into frustratingly predictable: they’re now not sharp initially, mentally or bodily, and by the point they blank up their errors, the sport is every now and then unsalvageable.
Certain, they outshot the Blues 12-0 to start out the second one duration. However they have been down 2-0 at that time towards a St. Louis group that was once taking part in conservatively and, typically, is aware of how you can protect a lead.
The primary function, 6:37 after the outlet faceoff, was once most commonly dangerous success. Vladimir Tarasenko’s centering go ramped up off the stick of Canuck callup Will Lockwood, rolled off the again of Halak, then the crossbar earlier than bouncing in off Blues defenceman Marco Scandella. But it surely additionally got here on the finish of sustained power when the Canucks couldn’t win a puck fight or make a play to transparent their zone.
On the second one function, at 14:02, Conor Garland skated the puck right into a turnover, inflicting a two-on-one during which Canucks defenceman Brad Hunt allowed Ivan Barbashev to go throughout to David Perron, who roofed a shot over Halak.
“We knew it was once a very powerful sport for us and I assumed we got here out a little bit bit sluggish and became a little bit bit too many pucks over at their blue line,” Canucks defenceman Oliver Ekman-Larsson mentioned. “And it roughly value us within the first.
“I assumed that they performed the way in which we have been meant to play a little bit bit this night: they have been roughly sitting again a little bit bit and looking ahead to us to show the puck over. Credit score to them. They performed good and we did not.”
“That is the entire thing — being mentally tricky,” winger J.T. Miller mentioned. “There is no simple video games; everyone’s preventing for one thing at the moment. Bodily, guys across the league are going via a large number of the similar stuff, so you have to be mentally tricky and whoever desires it extra usually wins the sport. That they had a greater get started than we did.”
BOUDREAU BLASTS GARLAND
Recognized for his plain-spoken honesty when speaking about his group, Boudreau mentioned this when requested about Garland, who has no aims and 5 assists within the final 15 video games: “He did not play rather well, and we’d like extra out of him. I feel he is urgent actually exhausting to attain as a result of he hasn’t scored shortly.
“However the concept is you’ll’t do all of it on your own if you end up urgent. You have to use your teammates. I feel he may have handed the puck; He carried it a little bit an excessive amount of. He was once one of the most forwards I did not assume had an excellent sport.”
A darling of analytics, Garland nonetheless co-led the Canucks with 5 pictures on the right track in his 14:42 of ice time, and had a five-on-five expected-goals-for share of 74.1 to head together with his 65.2 consistent with cent shot proportion (15-8).
However the dynamo does overhandle the puck now and then, which may make it tricky on linemates. And his linemates are Miller, the Canucks’ main scorer, and constant winger Tanner Pearson.
Nonetheless, Garland infrequently stood out negatively on Monday, and Boudreau later attempted to melt his complaint by way of announcing: “We were not excellent as a group. There wasn’t a large number of forwards that performed the way in which that they are able to taking part in. I am not going to dissect everyone’s play. However we will all be higher; that is what I’m going to say.”
An indictment of the highest Canucks is that Vancouver’s simplest function was once by way of Hunt, the 6th defenceman, assisted by way of intensity forwards Juho Lammikko and Vasily Podkolzin.
STANDINGS STANDSTILL
Even with their 2-1-1 travel, the Canucks nonetheless path the overall wild-card playoff spot within the Western Convention by way of 3 issues. In St. Louis, they squandered their sport in-hand at the Vegas Golden Knights. However the Winnipeg Jets are some extent forward of the Canucks and feature performed one fewer sport, whilst the group proper at the back of Vegas, Dallas, has 4 video games in-hand.
With 14 video games to head, the Canucks most definitely want the an identical of eleven wins to have a possibility at making the playoffs.
“We want to win video games at the moment,” Miller mentioned. “Each and every sport we lose, it simply will get tougher and tougher. It is disappointing. I certainly glance in a reflect for myself. I don’t believe I introduced it as of late; I wasn’t as engaged as I had to be for some explanation why. I am a little bit drained, however I certainly take one of the vital onus on myself.”
THEY’RE NO. 31!
Having trailed the penalty-kill ratings virtually from the beginning of the season, the Canucks after all made it out of final position by way of killing all 3 St. Louis energy performs on Monday.
The Canucks PK, which stood at an traditionally inept 60.3 consistent with cent on Nov. 17, inched as much as 72.8 consistent with cent on Monday and previous the Detroit Purple Wings (72.4 consistent with cent). Vancouver has killed 21 of its final 23 disadvantages, and is a mid-range 78.9 consistent with cent since Boudreau become trainer on Dec. 5.
