Vancouver head coach Manny Malhotra said the Canucks want to improve their D-zone time and faceoff play as they host the Edmonton Oilers.
The Story
Vancouver is preparing for its home opener against the Edmonton Oilers with projected lines that, according to the team’s morning skate, remain the same as in its most recent game. The matchup comes after Vancouver’s head coach Manny Malhotra said the excitement of playing in front of the home crowd is a boost for the team.
Malhotra said the home-opener atmosphere also supports a “normal game-day preparation.” He added that, after a win, the Canucks still have “a lot of things within our game that need to be cleaned up,” including reducing how much time they spend in the defensive zone and cutting down the opportunities they previously gave Edmonton.
The Canucks projected lines include: Jake DeBrusk – Elias Pettersson – Jonathan Lekkerimäki; Liam Öhgren – Marco Rossi – Brock Boeser; Drew O’Connor – Max Sasson – Linus Karlsson; Arshdeep Bains – Paul Cotter – Brendan Gallagher; Zeev Buium – Filip Hronek; Jamie Oleksiak – Tom Willander.
Vancouver will also lean on its centre group, Malhotra said, aiming for better collective execution on faceoffs. He noted that Elias Pettersson led the team in faceoff percentage at an even 50 per cent, while “the rest of the team went 12-for-36,” and Malhotra said the Canucks want centres to have better timing as well as wings coming up with loose pucks and winning edge battles.
Malhotra also discussed leadership group choices for the season, saying the team’s approach is to “empower more guys within our room to have a voice.” He said the six alternate captains include younger players who “lead by example and do all the things that we’re preaching.”
For Edmonton, the Oilers are dealing with multiple injuries, including Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Jason Dickinson, Matt Savoie, and Frederik Andersen. The team is also expected to be without top-line winger Zach Hyman, whose injury reportedly occurred in Edmonton’s final preseason game; Hyman played in the season opener but is now expected to miss about two weeks.
Without Hyman, the Oilers are loading up their top line with Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, with projected lines listed as: Vasily Podkolzin – Connor McDavid – Leon Draisaitl; Max Jones – Colton Dach – Kasperi Kapanen; Alex Formenton – Owen Michaels – Mathieu Joseph; Isaac Howard – Joshua Samanski – Trent Frederic; Mattias Ekholm – Evan Bouchard; Ryan Shea – Connor Murphy; and Jake Walman – Shakir Mukhamadullin.
← More stories