The Vancouver Canucks had quite the off night against the Los Angeles Kings.
This season has been strange for the Vancouver Canucks.
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The Pacific Division franchise sits on a 10-5-0 record for October and the first week of November, taking home wins against some of the strongest franchises in the NHL. They’ve beaten the St. Louis Blues, the Montreal Canadiens, and the San Jose Sharks– just to name a few. They’re second in their Division right now, and sixth in the league overall. Not a terrible start to the season.
Saturday night, though, reminded Canucks fans that all good things can come to an end, as the team fell 5-1 to the defending Stanley Cup champions. Newly acquired netminder Ryan Miller was yanked for the second time this season, and a couple key players- Radim Vrbata included- skated limited minutes in the third period due to ‘discomfort’.
Head coach Willie Desjardins was unamused with the team’s performance, stating that they ‘didn’t show up’ and ‘aren’t good enough right now’.
Desjardins wasn’t alone in his criticism of the team. Saturday night’s lone goal scorer, Chris Higgins, suggested that the team hasn’t played well in a couple of games.
"“It’s probably what we deserved in San Jose, too,” he told The Province. “We gave up a lot of odd-man rushes and played right into their hands. We didn’t sustain any pressure and work on their defence and they only had five. It wasn’t a great effort and an appropriate scoreline. They play simple and straight ahead and there’s not anything extraordinary they throw at you.”"
The Canucks will face off against the Anaheim Ducks on Sunday at Honda Center. They will hope to renew strong play against their third California team this week, but the Ducks are desperate to finally notch a win at home. The Anaheim squad has fallen in their last three home games- to the Sharks, the New York Islanders, and the Arizona Coyotes.
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