Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet tries to be diplomatic while awaiting the return of his top players from injury.
“Listen, our D are trying, everybody’s trying,” he said after the 3-0 loss to the Nashville Predators on Friday night. “Let’s face it, you guys can say what you want, we’re trying. We didn’t score tonight, we had some opportunities, we didn’t score.”
Both Quinn Hughes and Elias Pettersson will make the journey with the team as the Canucks embark on a five-game road trip. The D-man and the centre are considered day-to-day and were on the ice for Sunday practice.
Vancouver is 1-2-and-1 with both players missing from the line-up. In the four previous games with both players, the Canucks went 1-1and-2. So this isn’t all about two guys, although their roles are most prominent. Hughes is the reigning Norris Trophy winner as the NHL’s best defenceman.
Captain “Huggy’s” partner, injured top-pair righty Filip Hronek is still a ways away. He is skating.
Goalie Thatcher Demko, who left midway through Thursday night’s game against the Seattle Kraken, is day-to-day.
Big forward Dakota Joshua left Friday night’s game against the Predators, only to return. He’s questionable.
The trip will take the Canucks to four Eastern Conference opponents, a crucial set of games over six nights beginning in Montreal on Monday night, before wrapping up on January 14th in Winnipeg against the Central Division Jets.
The Canucks sit in the Western Conference’s second wild card playoff position with at least one game-in-hand on every other wild card contender.
The game against the Canadiens will start a little after 4:30 pm Pacific time.
