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Losses keep stacking up as woeful Canucks limp on from Canadiens beating to face the Sens
Published Jan 13, 2026 • Last updated 11 hours ago • 9 minute read
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Phillip Danault of the Montréal Canadiens and Filip Hronek of the Vancouver Canucks battle for position during the game Jan. 12 in Montreal. Photo by Minas Panagiotakis /Getty ImagesArticle content
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Is there any hope for the Vancouver Canucks?
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This is the big question for Canucks fans after their seventh straight loss, 6-3 at the hands of the Montreal Canadiens. Can the Senators, losers of four straight, provide respite?
Vancouver’s last win was a shootout victory on Dec. 29. Their last win in regulation was against the Islanders on Dec. 19. They haven’t won yet this year.
Yesterday in our Canucks Live file we asked you in our poll if you’d support the Canucks through a full rebuild. People rail on the owners about not wanting to tear it down, but honestly, would fans still buy tickets, still watch the games, still buy merch as the team goes through a painful reconstruction? Well, 43 per cent said yes they would, 37 per cent said they’d watch on TV. Just 13 per cent said they’d pass until the team wins and seven per cent said they’re done.
Encouraging numbers. But what fans want is hope. Losses are OK if fans are still seeing promise from young players and prospects and they see a team showing flashes but living through mistakes and ultimately getting better and being competitive.
The Canucks are not competitive. After opening the season with a pair of shootout losses, the Canucks have given up at least five goals in every game on this road trip. The closest game, the 5-3 loss to Buffalo, they were down 4-0 before a late push. The game against the Leafs was over in the first period.
It’s one thing to watch your team suffer growing pains. It’s another to look like they don’t belong. Let’s hope there’s, um, hope at least against Ottawa tonight.
Garland a trade chip? Hronek?
Conor Garland’s name is starting to be whispered all over it seems. The feisty winger is a fan favourite here and he’s having another strong season. You’d have to think other teams out there would be interested in his services.
“I’ve been hearing his name out there a fair bit too,” NHL insider Chris Johnston said the latest edition of his podcast.
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That tracks with whispers PJ’s heard lately too. Obviously the Canucks would want a big return for the winger: if they’re after a first round pick for Kiefer Sherwood, which everyone seems to agree, Garland would likely draw that and more.
PJ’s already filed a story looking at Filip Hronek, who certainly would fill a need in Ottawa — and Ottawa GM, and ex-Canuck, Steve Staios travelled down to Montreal last night to watch the Canucks and Habs, a day before his Senators are to host the Canucks.
If the Canucks were to move either or both of these guys, the rebuild, and the tank, would well and truly be on.
What we’re saying
Ben Kuzma gave his verdict on the Canadiens game last night, and while it may not be fair to blame a young goaltender, the Canucks simply need help to shut the door.
Here are some of Ben’s selected grades from Monday night.
Elias Pettersson (C+)
Four shots, five attempts. Scored early. Nine goals in last 19 games.
Brock Boeser (C)
Goal funk at 20 games. O-zone minor. Three shots, seven attempts.
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Evander Kane (C)
Had four give-aways but good net presence for his rebound goal.
Nils Höglander (C)
Applied pressure on forecheck to start the Kane goal sequence.
Tom Willander (C)
Took hits to exit puck, jumped up, but late in retreat on third goal.
Nikita Tolopilo (C+)
In shot siege early, often. Hung in. Took screened shot to finally beat him.
Looks like Jim Rutherford and Patrik Allvin need to be pulled in to talk to the teacher about these grades.
The other troubling part? Word is out about a difficult injury, that could take weeks to heal, for the Canucks’ prize asset, unrestricted free agent Kiefer Sherwood. Considering the reputation of Rutherford for not waiting until the deadline, this one is problematic, as Ben wrote:
Management is playing the waiting game with Sherwood and holding out for a first-round draft pick, or perhaps a second-rounder and prime prospect, to help trigger the franchise transition to a rebuild. Will this setback cool trade interest, or can Sherwood return to form to satisfy bidders? He’s pretty durable.
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The very nature in which the fiery right winger goes about his business to make life miserable for opponents — second overall in hits with 210 and leading his club with 17 goals and 23 points — has several suitors seeking his services as not only a playoff rental, but to extend the undrafted and undaunted fireball.
“He’s trying to go through something and my gut is it’s going to be a week to three weeks probably,” said Canucks head coach Adam Foote. “It doesn’t look promising.”
It’s always interesting when the Canucks do play the eastern Canadian teams because you actually get some honest insight into how the team is seen outside the market. Let’s put it this way, on Thursday the Canucks play in Columbus and you’d be hard pressed to find a Vancouver reference there outside of the TV listings. But not in hockey-mad Montreal.
How the mighty have fallen: Has it really been less than two seasons since the Vancouver Canucks finished first in the Pacific Division while winning 50 games?
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The Canucks, in a serious rebuilding mode — although president Jim Rutherford has called it a “hybrid rebuild,” whatever that means — are absolutely terrible.
Fortunately for the Canadiens, the NHL’s worst team made a stop at the Bell Centre Monday night. And the timing couldn’t have been better for Montreal — shut out at home Saturday by Detroit and about to embark on a three-game road trip, beginning Tuesday night at Washington.
Montreal’s 6-3 victory told only a portion of the story. The Canucks are now on a seven-game (0-5-2) losing streak while being outscored 34-15. How bad is Vancouver? Defenceman Quinn Hughes, their former captain who was traded to Minnesota one month ago, remains tied for third on the Canucks, with 23 points.
If there’s any justice in the hockey world, Vancouver will win the draft lottery and select Penn State forward Gavin McKenna.
How’s that trade working out? Defenceman Zeev Buium, one of three players acquired from Minnesota — along with a first-round draft choice this season — was a healthy scratch.
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Sieve of the night: Vancouver goalie Nikita Tolopilo, recalled from AHL Abbotsford Sunday following an injury to Thatcher Demko, was playing his first NHL game since Dec. 8. And it might be his last for a while. He was beaten on the 17th and 18th shots he faced — in a 20-second span, no less — along with the 28th and 29th directed his way. His save percentage was .854.
So, is Ottawa crackling with anticipation with the Canucks in town tonight?
One angle to the game is another meeting with former Canucks coach Travis Green, who is feeling the pressure in the nation’s capital.
Don’t let the historically bad goaltending fool you. The Senators are an excellent defensive team.
According to Natural Stat Trick, at 5-on-5, Ottawa has the best expected goals against — a statistic created to measure the probability of a shot becoming a goal based on shot location, angle and situation — in the league.
Combine that with the worst team save percentage the franchise has seen since 1993-94 and the culprit, or culprits, for the significant rise in goals against is obvious.
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Green has cultivated a defence-first mindset within his team. Sure, the Senators are not immune to small stretches of regression — the past two performances have been especially difficult to justify from a defensive standpoint — but firing a coach should never be a knee-jerk reaction.
The team’s 31st-ranked penalty kill (72.7%) is a blemish, no doubt. The Senators are still far too passive on the PK, in puck pressure and in structure, and the coaching staff hasn’t found a solution all season.
But in taking a closer look, goaltending is yet again muddying the waters. Ottawa has given up the third-fewest scoring chances on the penalty kill this season, but has the worst team save percentage while down a man.
Said Green: “Our group, they really understand their game. They know how they have to play to be effective. I think they have a lot of belief and I know as coaches we have a lot of belief in our group. We know how good of a team we have and how good we can play if everyone’s playing their best. It starts there.”
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The Senators will host the last-place Vancouver Canucks (16-23-5) on Tuesday. And, if they lose their fifth in a row, the calls for Green’s firing will amplify.
But for now, it’s not on him.
It would be harsh if the Canucks actually got Green fired a second time.
What they’re saying
Here’s the nuts and bolts Associated Press preview of tonight’s game:
Vancouver Canucks (16-24-5, last in the Pacific Division, last in the NHL) vs. Ottawa Senators (20-19-5, last in the Atlantic Division, 25th in the NHL)
Ottawa, Ontario; 4 p.m.
BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Senators -239, Canucks +195; over/under is 6
BOTTOM LINE: The Ottawa Senators will try to stop their four-game skid when they take on the Vancouver Canucks.
Ottawa has a 10-9-3 record in home games and a 20-19-5 record overall. The Senators have gone 19-7-1 in games they score three or more goals.
Vancouver is 12-12-2 on the road and 16-24-5 overall. The Canucks have a –43 scoring differential, with 120 total goals scored and 163 given up.
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The teams meet Tuesday for the first time this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Tim Stutzle has scored 19 goals with 25 assists for the Senators. Claude Giroux has three goals and seven assists over the last 10 games.
Kiefer Sherwood has 17 goals and six assists for the Canucks. Elias Pettersson has four goals and one assist over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Senators: 3-6-1, averaging three goals, 5.5 assists, 5.8 penalties and 18.2 penalty minutes while giving up 3.9 goals per game.
Canucks: 1-7-2, averaging 2.2 goals, 3.6 assists, 3.2 penalties and 7.3 penalty minutes while giving up four goals per game.
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A rebuild can’t be worse than this
Thomas Drance highlights the pains of a rebuild in his comparsion of the Canucks to Canadiens. But even though the Canadiens have a long way to go to compete for the Cup they are on an upward trajectory – the same can’t be said of the Canucks. And that’s why nothing short of a total rebuild will suffice.
Drance: What lies ahead isn’t going to be easy or painless. There are no guarantees, and there never are.
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What lies ahead can’t possibly be worse, however, than the embarrassing false starts, the constant churn of organizational dysfunction and the thin, hopeless gruel that Vancouver has served up over the past decade. What lies ahead can’t possibly be worse than what we’ve seen of late.
It’s on the worst days of what’s to come that it’s worth bearing in mind that this too can be different.
If the Canucks can make this losing count over the next few years and assemble a critical mass of talent with the sort of character and skill that drips off this young Canadiens side, then the organization has a chance to build something magical. Something that resonates. Something that means more.
It’s time for the organization to embrace that challenge. With seriousness, patience and diligence.
Check back for more Canucks news throughout the day …
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Is Conor Garland’s leadership a fit for rebuild?
Player Grades: Nikita Tolopilo under siege
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