The Vancouver Canucks can win on the road. They’ve stunk at home.
Ottawa Senators vs. Vancouver Canucks
When: Saturday, 7 p.m., Rogers Arena
TV: Hockey Night in Canada. Radio: Sportsnet 650
Topic No. 2 for Saturday is Travis Green. The former Canucks bench boss has his new team humming: they come in to Saturday having won five straight.
Topic No. 3 is the Gaudfather: Adam Gaudette just needed a break to revive his NHL career. After a couple seasons back in the AHL, figuring it all out, he’s found a new home with the Senators. He raced out to a flying start early this season, but still has 13 goals in 31 games.
The history: The Canucks beat the Senators 4-3 last month in Ottawa, a score that flattered the Sens. The Canucks were on a different level, even without Miller, who had taken a leave earlier in the week. Brady Tkachuk lost his head in that game; the team captain needs to be a better example when the team is down and frustrated. He sure looks to have turned his game around lately.
The hope: The start. Keeping the lead. Outworking and outhustling the opposition. They’ve shown an ability to do this more than once, but rarely at home. The hope is that finally they’ll do all these things at home.
The fear: The noise outside the team is loud. The internal frustrations are hampering team harmony. What if they can’t pull together?
The latest: The Canucks flew home Friday from Vegas, rather than post-game Thursday because their pilot was ill and they had to wait for a replacement to become available. The team had Friday off anyway.
The lineup:
DeBrusk-Pettersson-Karlsson
Di Giuseppe-Miller-Boeser
Joshua-Suter-Garland
Heinen-Blueger-Sherwood
Hughes-Myers
Soucy-Juulsen
Forbort-Desharnais
Demko
The prediction: The Sens have something to prove. So do the Canucks. Watch for a grinding 2-1 win for Vancouver.