After sitting around for what seemed like an eternity, the Canucks finally played hockey again but the odds were already stacked against them. Losses to the Panthers, Lightning, and Hurricanes may have seemed obvious but they were in two of the three and put in one of their most impressive games of the season against the Capitals on Sunday afternoon.
The transformation from eyesore to beauty hasn’t been easy but the Canucks can legitimately challenge for a playoff spot since the blowup in December. Bruce Boudreau has got the most out of this team thus far and even with multiple positive cases from the latest variant, they’ve managed to stay afloat.
There have also been some “in season” stories that have dominated the news and that begins and ends with Elias Pettersson.
It’s been a tough go for the budding superstar but Sunday’s game vs. the Capitals may have been the breath of fresh air that Petey needed to turn his season around.
Pettersson has seen multiple goal-less droughts of nine games and one run of seven games; not the kind of numbers a rookie of the year sniper puts up after inking a new three-year deal.
Here’s his first tally:
LET IT RIP EP40! pic.twitter.com/8pQqJkFDRz
— Vancouver #Canucks (@Canucks) January 16, 2022
And a bit of fancy-dancy for number two:
Backhand off the back gives us the lead 👌 pic.twitter.com/AFHZW7d74m
— Vancouver #Canucks (@Canucks) January 16, 2022
It’s tough to say if Pettersson can regain the elite form he ran roughshod through the NHL for two seasons but games like this make you believe it’s possible.
Thankfully, it doesn’t all need to come from one player.
Thatcher Demko has held his own in net this year and that has earned him a trip to the NHL All-Star Game in Las Vegas, which I will not be attending because of the stupid Rona. That’s another story altogether. The game itself, tournament, whatever, is not all that great but it’s still a badge of honour to be chosen to go.
Bo Horvat was not picked but he’s about as valuable as it gets for the Canucks this season and it’s frightening to think of where this team is without him. Have I said this before?
Horvat has shown up on the scoresheet almost every other game and aside from the final chapter of Travis Green in which Bo didn’t have a point for seven games, he hasn’t gone longer than two games without a point this season. They aren’t just points on the stat sheet either, these are game clinchers, momentum changers, and just absolute piss missles from the circle.
Vancouver has managed to turn up the good and turn down the suck recently and it might just mean playoffs this spring, something this fan base hasn’t truly experienced in many years.
We’re not counting The Bubble.
Might they see the postseason this year? Let us know @ The PP1 Podcast on Google, Spotify, Apple, and anywhere you MIGHT think podcasts would be. Ask your neighbour, they’re probably listening already.
