Instant Reaction: Canucks head into Olympic break losers of 3 straight following 5-2 loss to Golden Knights<\/p>\n
Welcome back to Instant Reaction, the series here at\u00a0CanucksArmy<\/a>\u00a0where we give you our instant reaction to tonight\u2019s\u00a0Vancouver Canucks<\/a>\u00a0game and ask our readers to do the same in the comments section below!Starting LineupFirst period<\/p>\n This game gets started with some bad blood early. Original mistfit Rielly Smith was caught offside by a near country mile, but passed it over to Shea Theodore. The Aldergrove, BC native had to have heard the whistle late as he wound up a snap shot and fired the puck at Kevin Lankinen after the whistle. Typically, there wouldn\u2019t be a reaction from the Canucks players, but this time, Aatu R\u00e4ty and Elias Pettersson (D) immediately charged at Theodore to stand up for their netminder.<\/p>\n Funny enough, Golden Knights defenceman Jeremy Lauzon was the only one to receive a penalty on the play, sending the Canucks to the power play.<\/p>\n Interesting to note that Conor Garland replaced Jonathan Lekkerim\u00e4ki on the top unit power play. Lekkerim\u00e4ki\u2019s skill set is best served in the top-six, where he has an opportunity to score. If you aren\u2019t going to play him there, he should really be on the top power play unit in a shooting position on the half-wall to utilize his best weapon: his shot. At least he was put with long-time friend Liam \u00d6hgren<\/a> on the second unit.<\/p>\n Anyway, the power play did not amount to anything, but in the dying seconds, Lekkerim\u00e4ki had a nifty pass to Evander Kane off the corner for a scoring chance. As time expired, the play went the other way, and Keegan Kolesar was sprung on a two-on-one with Lauzon.<\/p>\n But Lankinen was there to make the first big stop of the contest.<\/p>\n Kevin Lankinen makes a big save on the Vegas 2-on-1.<\/p>\n \ud83c\udfa5: Sportsnet | #Canucks<\/a> <\/p>\n Lankinen was tested again shortly after when R\u00e4ty took an interference penalty on Jack Eichel, sending the Golden Knights<\/a> to a power play of their own. But the Finnish netminder stopped all four shots he faced, and kept this game scoreless.<\/p>\n Later in the frame, a bit of a scary play when Kolesar left his feet to make contact with E. Pettersson (D) along the Golden Knights bench. Pettersson was hit up high and appeared to have his back bent over the bench boards while catching Kolesar\u2019s gloves in the face.<\/p>\n Jumping to hit a guy in the face isn’t a penalty today apparently.<\/p>\n Pettersson was bent over in obvious pain, but remained on the bench and did not miss a shift. Tough cookie.<\/p>\n Drew O\u2019Connor had the best chance of the period when he followed up on his own rebound and had a chance behind Akira Schmid, but sent it through the crease. That would be the last threatening chance of the opening frame.<\/p>\n 0-0 after one.<\/p>\n Takeaways:<\/p>\n \u2013 This game was fairly back and forth. With these two teams at the bookends of the Pacific Division, not many believed that would be the case after 20 minutes. We\u2019ll see what the score bug looks like after 40.<\/p>\n Second period<\/p>\n Buckle up, cause the second period gets wild.<\/p>\n After five minutes of warming up, the team began their scoring spree. Mark Stone drops it to newly acquired Rasmus Andersson, who finds Jack Eichel all alone in the slot. Eichel has nothing but time with no Canuck in a stick-length distance to check him. He takes his time, picks his spot, and wires one far side on Lankinen to open the scoring.<\/p>\n Jack Eichel opens the scoring a little over five minutes into the second period.<\/p>\n \ud83c\udfa5: Sportsnet | #Canucks<\/a> <\/p>\n 1-0 Golden Knights.<\/p>\n Just over a minute later, Vegas comes back on the attack.<\/p>\n Braeden Bowman has the puck along the wall and carries it into the zone. M. Pettersson goes to pressure him, and since Tom Willander stepped up in the neutral zone, leaving the middle of the zone wide open for Cole Reindhart to waltz right in on Lankinen and beat him with a forehand, backhand, forehand move to double the Vegas lead.<\/p>\n And just like that it\u2019s 2-0 Vegas.<\/p>\n \ud83c\udfa5: Sportsnet | #Canucks<\/a> <\/p>\n Not a great look for Lekkerim\u00e4ki on this goal. He is in line with the goal scorer, does not make an effort to keep up with him as he enters the zone, knowing that Willander has pinched up, and drops his stick in the process.<\/p>\n 2-0 Golden Knights.<\/p>\n But not long after, the Canucks finally got on the board. After some defensive zone pressure from Conor Garland and Teddy Blueger, the duo forced a turnover. Anticipating gaining possession, Liam \u00d6hgren jumps up in the neutral zone and springs the Canucks back on the attack. He gains possession, enters the zone, draws the defender over to him, cuts and finds E. Pettersson (D), who jumps up in the rush and slides the shot five-hole.<\/p>\n \ud83d\udea8CANUCKS GOAL\ud83d\udea8<\/p>\n D-Petey scores to bring the Canucks within one.<\/p>\n \ud83c\udfa5: Sportsnet | #Canucks<\/a> <\/p>\n 2-1 Golden Knights.<\/p>\n But right after the Canucks gained a little bit of momentum, Sin City stole it right back.<\/p>\n Pressuring PO Joseph behind the net, Eichel forces the turnover and centres a pass to Mark Stone at the net front. Instead of taking the open shot, he taps a back-pass to Ivan Barbashev, who takes the space in the high slot and fires one far side on Lankinen to extend his goal streak to four games.<\/p>\n Less than 30 seconds later Vegas takes another two goal lead.<\/p>\n \ud83c\udfa5: Sportsnet | #Canucks<\/a> <\/p>\n 3-1 Golden Knights.<\/p>\n Attempting to redeem himself after the turnover, Joseph nearly got his first as a Canuck, had it not been for a miraculous, sprawling effort from Schmid.<\/p>\n Conor Garland sets up PO Joseph cross ice but Akira Schmid makes an unbelievable stop.<\/p>\n \ud83c\udfa5: Sportsnet | #Canucks<\/a> <\/p>\n That net could not have been more wide open.<\/p>\n The hockey gods must have felt horrible for PO getting robbed like that, so they gave him another opportunity in the dying seconds of the period, and this time he capitalized.<\/p>\n \u00d6hgren goes in heavy on the forecheck and forces the turnover. Garland gets the puck, wheels it around the circle and to Joseph at the point. He fakes the one-timer to drop the shot blocker, steps up, and fires a wrist shot through traffic and into the net.<\/p>\n \ud83d\udea8CANUCKS GOAL\ud83d\udea8<\/p>\n PO Joseph gets one past Schmid to make it 3-2 in the dying seconds of the period.<\/p>\n \ud83c\udfa5: Sportsnet | #Canucks<\/a> <\/p>\n That\u2019s the hockey gods getting back even.<\/p>\n 3-2 Golden Knights.<\/p>\n Takeaways:<\/p>\n \u2013 Well, I told you we\u2019d check in after 40 minutes, and, not bad. Only down one, outshooting the Golden Knights by three. The Canucks would have probably taken this situation heading into the game.<\/p>\n \u2013 For the second consecutive game, the \u00d6hgren-Blueger-Garland line was the best line the Canucks had on the night, but they were consistently buzzing and generating chances in the offensive zone. I don\u2019t think you can say that about any other forward line to this point.<\/p>\n Third period<\/p>\n The final frame started a lot quicker than the second did \u2013 and not in a good way for the Canucks.<\/p>\n Mitch Marner walks out of the corner with the puck, and Jake DeBrusk pokes the puck off his stick. But for whatever reason, Tyler Myers pirouettes and opens a lane for Marner to feed Pavel Dorofeyev through Joseph\u2019s stick for a back-door tap-in.<\/p>\n Vegas takes another two goal lead to start the third period.<\/p>\n \ud83c\udfa5: Sportsnet | #Canucks<\/a> <\/p>\n 4-2 Golden Knights.<\/p>\n And exactly one minute later, the Golden Knights extend their lead.<\/p>\n Kolesar takes E.Pettersson (D) out wide and wraps around the net. Instead of switching, the two Canucks defencemen run into each other behind the goal line on the opposite side of the puck, leaving a sprawling Garland the only thing between a tap-in at the net front for Alexander Holtz.<\/p>\n And it\u2019s 5-2.<\/p>\n