Alex Biega and Nic Dowd drew into the lineup in place of Ben Hutton and Nikolay Goldobin in this game. Green wanted the “compete level” that Biega and Dowd bring, which is understandable given the overall lack of competitiveness in the last game against the Arizona Coyotes.
I even understand scratching Nikolay Goldobin; he struggled against the Coyotes, both with and without the puck. As much as the rest of this season is about giving young players a chance to prove themselves, you can make a case for sitting Goldobin to give him a different perspective or reinforce a certain lesson.
What I don’t get, however, is scratching Ben Hutton. Honestly, Hutton and Gudbranson were the Canucks’ best pairing against the Coyotes and Hutton has made significant strides recently, making more confident and aggressive reads and jumping up into the play offensively.
Green’s explanation? He was just the odd man out because Green wanted Biega back in.
Green wants Biega back in for his compete level and Hutton "drew the short end of the stick... Doesn't kill penalties, doesn't play the power play..." Also wants Goldobin to work on a few things. Could get back in next game. #Canucks https://t.co/RY74pZ45p1
— Farhan Lalji (@FarhanLaljiTSN) 9 March 2018
Here’s the thing about Hutton not killing penalties or playing on the power play: he should be doing both. Among Canucks’ penalty killers, Hutton leads the way in the lowest rate of shot attempts and shots on goal against, and is second behind Troy Stecher in goals against. There’s a case to be made that he’s the Canucks’ best penalty killer.
On the power play, the Canucks have generated the most shots on goal with Ben Hutton on the ice compared to every other Canucks’ defenceman. He and Derrick Pouliot were an effective combo on the power play earlier in the season and he’s very effective at getting the puck through traffic to the net.
So, if the reasoning for scratching Hutton is that he doesn’t play on special teams, I’m going to need to hear the reasoning for why Hutton doesn’t play on special teams.
Like Ben Hutton, I watched this game.
- Things got off to such a great start. Bo Horvat made a great play on a zone entry, pulling up to create a little room, then finding a streaking Michael Del Zotto all alone like Frank the Tank. Del Zotto beat Devan Dubnyk five-hole, but the puck skittered wide. While Dubnyk looked confused, Del Zotto took the puck and tucked it around the other side of the net with a wicked wraparound.
- Like an over-eager Tinder user, Minnesota replied immediately, with Zach Parise getting a bit lucky with a bouncing puck, lifting it just over Anders Nilsson’s shoulder and into the top of the net. If only Nilsson was a little bit taller than 6’6”, he might have been able to get his shoulders up to stop that shot.
- I enjoyed these guys:
Swing and a miss#mnwild #Canucks pic.twitter.com/Syq8qD0Dwt
— Ryan Biech (@ryanbiech) March 10, 2018
- People give all sorts of advice about completing a quality high-five, with one of the most popular pieces of advice to look at the other person’s elbow. I have a simpler rule: one person sets up the target and the other person hits it. What these Wild fans messed up is that they both took a swing. The initiator of the five needs to set up a steady target — no swinging — and the other party needs to complete the five. It’s an invitation and a response.
- The Canucks were lucky to exit the first period tied 1-1, as Charlie Coyle put a shot right back through the crease on a wide open net. That chance doesn’t happen, however, if Jake Virtanen doesn’t chase a hit on Jared Spurgeon. The pint-sized defenceman slipped the check like he was dining and dashing. He stepped into open ice, took a pass from the boards and set up Coyle at the backdoor.
- Somehow 41-year-old Matt Cullen, the oldest active player in the NHL, was a dominant force in this game. He had seven shots on goal, with some of Nilsson’s best saves devoted to robbing Cullen of a five-goal night. Has anyone checked to see if Cullen is one of those Cullens? You know, the ones with fangs and sparkly skin? Vampirism would explain the longevity.
- Like Bella Swan, Nilsson couldn’t resist Cullen forever. A miscommunication on a Wild rush left both Derrick Pouliot and Jake Virtanen in no man’s land: Virtanen should have chased the puck carrier, while Pouliot cheated towards Cullen in the middle to take away the passing option. Instead, neither did anything useful at all: the pass made it through to Cullen and he was able to deke to the backhand as Nilsson slide the opposite direction.
- Remember how earlier in the season Canucks fans would say that when Thomas Vanek got traded, that would open up a spot in the lineup for a younger player? And remember how the Vanek trade actually brought back not one, but two roster players? I wonder if Nikolay Goldobin remembered that as Jussi Jokinen scored the 2-2 goal. Food for thought.
- I don’t really have anything else to say about this game. The Canucks battled hard, played significantly better than they did against the Coyotes, and had some chances in the third period to tie the game. Pouliot hit the post. Stecher did a neat little spinorama to set up a chance. The Canucks had nearly as many shots in the third period as they did all game against te Coyotes. It wasn’t enough.
