PITTSBURGH (34-13-7) VS VANCOUVER (25-25-6)
THE PAINT CAN. PITTSBURGH, PA
7:00 PM EST. ROOT SPORTS & NHLN
The Penguins have returned home after going on their annual “dad’s trip” out west which resulted in tons of binge drinking in between periods and jello shots on the bench. You probably didn’t know that all happened, but it did, and it is clearly evidenced in the 6.5 periods of hockey the Penguins put together against Colorado and Arizona. It is tough for a team sitting in a comfortable position to get hyped up to play teams like Colorado and Arizona on the road in February, so grabbing 3 out 4 points is a win any season but especially in this season. The game in Arizona was the first game the Penguins have played this month without an injury. Mike Sullivan announced yesterday that Bryan Rust will be out “longer term, not end of season, but longer term” which is and odd way of saying anything but whatever. Now that the Penguins are back home hopefully Sidney Crosby can get his 1000th point so ROOT can show their crazy cool graphic that took them way too long to create at the beginning of the season and then we can all move on.
So what do the Canucks bring to The Paint Can tonight? A below .500 record that currently has them 4 points out of the final Wild Card spot in the West. Vancouver is 4-6-0 in their last 10, but won their most recent game against Bylsma’s Buffalo Country Club. Yes, the Canucks still have the Sedin twins somehow: Daniel is currently at 973 career points and will be playing in his 1200th game tonight, while Henrik sits at 1004 points in 1222 games. It’s a shame they will have to be broken apart and traded in order for one of them to win the cup. It’s going to suck if one wins and the other doesn’t, what an awkward family holiday that sets up.
These West coast teams are pretty tough to build any hate for, especially a team that is as predictable as the Canucks.
PROJECTED STARTING LINEUPS:
These are the lines that the Penguins used in practice yesterday, with the only rotating player being Rowney with Archibald. Malkin spent time practicing on the first powerplay unit, which is usually the tell tale sign of a return the next day. If for some reason Malkin is out again Rowney will slide into that spot. Josh Archibald was the only player to show up in Arizona and has earned himself a second game, and now that Rust is going to be out longer term he may have to look for a short sublet apartment in Pittsburgh. Conor Sheary is in the second week of his 4-6 week injury timeline, and Carl Hagelin is still “going by the protocol.” In other words, the Penguins are a hot mess with wingers right now and you have to think this has changed JR’s deadline approach somewhat.
The Canucks still have the corpse of Brandon Sutter centering their second line, we will never forget Sutter, and all the time she came up inches short:
Still one of ROOTs best moments.
I forgot about the Loui Eriksson signing by the Canucks this offseason, so far Loui-lou has put up 11 goals and 11 assists in 56 games played, completely justifying the 36 million 6 year contract the Canucks gave him at the beginning of the season.
Also making an appearance for the Canucks is Jayson Megna, who some of you will recall as the speedy engine that could under Bylsma. Smegma left town after the Shero/Byslma firings, and he hasn’t resulted in much. His 7 points in 37 games this season is his best start since his first NHL stint with the Pens that saw him put up 9 points in 36 games… woo.
WHO TO WATCH:
FOR VANCOUVER: THE SEDINS
The Sedins are getting up there in age, and though I am not entirely sure they will ask to be split up and traded for a chance at the holy grail, you have to think it is a possibility. The things these two accomplish on the ice is something that we will possibly never see again, and since the Penguins only play the Canucks twice just take time to appreciate it. The world today is so much information down your throat that I think a lot of us forget that we are living in a time with the most NHL talent on the ice every night (regardless of the NHL top 100).
FOR PITTSBURGH: TOM KUHNHACKL
Yeah I know, you are probably asking yourself what the hell. Here’s my deal, Tom Kuhnhackl has played a solid game within Sullivan’s system every time he is on the ice. If Eric Fehr is traded, Kuhnhackl slides in effortlessly. In fact, Kuhn and Fehr have the same amount of assists, but Kuhnhackl has played half the games as Fehr. I assume Sullivan opts to scratch Tom so often because he only wants him to play on the 4th line (while he moves Scott Wilson around) which I suppose is fine, except Scott Wilson hasn’t scored since his high school prom. Tonight will be Kuhnhackl’s third straight game, look for him to get on the board in some way.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
For the love of everything I hope Crosby gets his two points early in the game so we can all move on. I love Sid as much as the next guy, but this has been such a build up for a milestone that was expected, it’s nauseating at this point. We all knew Crosby would get 1000 points, and yes we should celebrate it, but let’s quit acting like he is getting ready to break some kind of record.
If Malkin comes back the Penguins will have the best top 6 they’ve iced in 3 weeks, but it is still riddled with injuries. The addition of Agent 101 can only help a team that has looked a little depleted the last few games. The Canucks are going to come out of the gate trying to shove their game down the defending champs throat, as we’ve seen from teams all year. If the Pens can withstand the initial storm, they will come out victorious on the evening.
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