Canucks Use Fantasy Opening Night Lines in Final Preseason Game – Hockey Writers – Vancouver Canucks

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Heinen-Miller-Boeser Debut as Miller Plays First Preseason Game

The Canucks have played almost every player who appears to be healthy this preseason – except for JT Miller. The team hasn't come out and said he's injured, but Miller provided a little clarity on that in his press availability on Tuesday (October 1) saying, “The number of games I want to play is not the issue here. Unfortunately, it's hard for some guys, but I had to take care of myself and not push it to be ready for Friday's game. I was worried that if I had played earlier, I might have aggravated something and made it worse, which we didn't need. I'll be ready to go on Friday.”

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It's understandable why Miller doesn't want to play, considering the number of serious injuries seen in the NHL recently. From Drew Doughty in LA to Patrik Laine and David Reinbacher in Montreal, there is no shortage of long-term injuries to key players. The Canucks need Miller to be a 103-point player last season — and possibly more — in 2024-25. That means he needs to stay healthy and close to 100 percent for the rest of the season. If that means missing almost the entire preseason of meaningless games, then so be it.

Miller is motivated to be a better player this season, too, saying “I don't want my ceiling to be based on points. I might play an even better 200-yard game this year and score 20 under. That is not a failure for me. I want to be a 200-meter player in the league, and that's not changing.”

Miller will have his longtime running mate, Brock Boeser, by his side again this season, but they will be joined by newcomer Danton Heinen. They have been together since the start of training camp but will play for the first time in the preseason tonight. Judging by what we've seen in practice and scrimmages, they could be a good trio with Heinen providing speed and toughness up front to free up space for Miller and Boeser to work their magic.

Speaking of new lineup combinations making their debut, Daniel Sprong will get a chance to play with Elias Pettersson and Jake DeBrusk tonight. He hasn't spent time with them in the preseason so far, as he's been sent with AHLers and players likely to start in the bottom six. But with Jonathan Lekkerimaki back from Abbotsford, head coach Rick Tocchet moved him up to the top six after being impressed with his ability. determination to improve his whole game throughout the show program.

“He always asks questions. I think there is a lot of potential there. If he, Petey and Jake can stay together, it would be a good line for us but they have to make sure they play inside and come up with pucks as well.”

Strong has the skillset and hockey IQ to play with two top six players in Pettersson and DeBrusk. Now it's up to him to not only produce, but play a solid two-way game around them. He can not only focus on scoring goals at all times, but also support his teammates in all three areas. If he can do that, he can be a 20 or 30 goal scorer because of his lethal shot and speed.

Silovs Gets Final Dress Practice to Strengthen Opening Night Start

Arturs Silovs and Kevin Lankinen have both started two games in the preseason so far and while their stats don't speak for starting goaltenders, one of them will get the right to be in the starting lineup on opening night with Thatcher Demko still sitting on the shelf. It remains to be seen who that is at this point, but Silovs will have one last chance to show the coaching staff that it should be him. His last game was against the Flames on September 28 when he allowed four goals on 24 shots – mostly from long range through screens – and finished the game on the bench in what ended up being a 4-2 loss.

If Silovs is focused on picking up Lankinen when Demko returns, he will have to improve tracking the puck through traffic. He struggled with this even in the playoffs against the Oilers, and new goaltending coach Marko Torenius should be the focus this season if he ever wants his protégé to become a consistent starter in the NHL. We'll see how he does against a team he saw a lot of when they started all seven games of their second-round series in May.

Game Day Burning Question: Will Raty Beat Blueger at Third Line Center?

The burning question going into this game is whether Aatu Raty can prove to Tocchet that he should be the one to replace Nils Hoglander and Conor Garland on opening night in place of the now healthy Teddy Blueger. Blueger has yet to appear in a preseason game as he recovers from minor surgery to correct a lower back problem. Tocchet has jumped between Blueger and Raty in the last two practices, and sat with Raty again in the morning circuit today.

Raty has impressed in the preseason centering two buzzsaws, and has given the coaching staff some time to figure out who should be the third-line center to start the season. Blueger has the experience of playing with Garland, but Raty has improved as well, looking as shocked as Dakota Joshua when he scored his only goal of the show so far, scoring behind Flames goalie Dan Vladar after a flawless pass. Garland. We'll see if those three can make us happy again and stay together at the start of the season next week.

What's next for the Canucks?

The Canucks will have a few days off before their home opener against the Flames on October 9 when the other eight teams will be busy starting the season. As for tonight, fans can see the action on Sportsnet and tune in on Sportsnet 650 starting at 7 pm Pacific. Will they enter the season with a win or their fourth straight loss? Stay tuned.