Canucks Pull Out Great Escape vs. Predators in Game 4 – Hockey Writers – Vancouver Canucks

Bear with us for a while. The way the Vancouver Canucks pulled off their surprising Game 4 victory over the Nashville Predators was similar to the National Football League's Kansas City Chiefs last season. Throughout the 2023-24 NFL campaign, it was argued that the Patrick Mahomes-led Chiefs were the worst version of themselves – the best, but the worst version. Who won the Super Bowl? Kings. The moral of the story is that you don't always have to be the best to be the best. Here are the takeaways from Sunday night's Game 4.

The Inexplicable Comeback of the Canucks

No one can argue that the Canucks played a good game. The Predators responded enthusiastically to a 1-0 loss by making life difficult third string goalkeeper Arturs Silovs. Unlike Game 3, where Nashville was often overwhelmed by Vancouver's defense, in Game 4, the hosts looked more dominant on offense. After all, they beat their opponents 30-20.

Related: Hellebyuck, Demko, Bobrovsky Name Vezina Trophy Finalists

When Nashville took a 3-1 advantage 12 seconds into the third quarter, many thought that was the game, the setup and the game. That Filip Forsberg's marker was locked into the net by his skate (not the kicking motion) felt like poetic justice. The Canucks simply didn't do enough to earn the win. They continued to do precious little with the puck for the next 17 minutes or so. They have been working hard, shy and it looks like the club is content to get a break down the road.

Then Silvos was called to the bench to send out another attacker.

In one of the biggest twists of these Stanley Cup Playoffs, the underdogs scored twice in the final 2:49 of regulation to tie the game at 3-3 and force overtime. Desperate times call for desperate measures. In those 2 minutes and 49 seconds, the Canucks were incredibly aggressive, doing great things to keep the puck in Predators territory, with Brock Boeser scoring two to complete his hat trick (he scored the first goal of the game).

A coach can give a rousing speech at halftime before extra time after something like that, but even great teams can be shaken. Lo and behold, Nashville was held in front a minute into OT, and Connor Garland fed Elias Lindholm for the winner.

The Canucks didn't play well, but they made the right plays at the right time.

Arturs Silovs: Next Man Up!

We've talked about fighting the odds, miracle goals, and even the NFL, but what about the hockey gods? The Canucks were the Pacific Division champions this season. Therefore, they were duly shown mercy when this first round series began. In what feels like a force beyond our comprehension interfering with the playoffs and even the playoffs, Vancouver has been forced to use its third-string goaltender.

Thatcher Demko – Vezina Trophy contender – returned from injury late for a hero's welcome. He helped win Game 1, and then hurt himself. That's right, Casey DeSmith's backup has a great reputation. The 2nd game didn't go according to plan, but they made up for it with a good 3rd game. That was not enough for the gods. Thirst for more adventure. It was announced Sunday morning that DeSmith will miss Game 4 due to injury. Enter Silovs.

The 23-year-old Latvian farmer is completely unknown. He has played nine NHL games in two seasons, after all. Well, this was a big time when multiple goalie injuries could have derailed the Canucks' plans to take a 3-1 lead in the series. However, it did not. Silov's goals against the average of 3.00 and save percentage of .900 will not convince the voters to make a mistake in nominating Demko to the Vezina. All a club can ask for in situations like the one Vancouver faced in Game 4 is for the goaltender to make enough saves to give the team a chance. Anything more than that is gravy. As a result, Silvos finished the job.

Quinn Hughes: Oh Captain, my Captain

A few words on Canucks talisman Quinn Hughes. Everyone knows Hughes had a tough game. Not necessarily in the sense that he played poorly — we'll get to our line of play in a moment — but in the sense that he was covered by the Predators multiple times. The broadcast would take a toll on him, and he looked worse for age.

But big players, like big teams, will come big when they're needed most, no matter how bad the day has been up until then. His play on Gustav Nyquist in the dying seconds when the Canucks were pressing for a game-tying goal was a good thing. Besides the good looks, it was important. Had Nashville dropped the puck, the game would have ended with a 3-2 Predators win.