Canucks give up three unanswered, drop 3-2 OT decision in Utah

The thing I found myself reminding people about the most ahead of this game is that Utah HC is quietly one of the NHL’s best 5v5 teams. They’re young, they skate hard, and they defend well. So of course, it was fitting that power plays are going to be something we talk about the most tonight.

Utah started the game with plenty of offensive pressure and muleitple shot attempts, but through ten minutes of play, just two shots on goal. The Canucks did well to make sure pucks weren’t getting through to Thatcher Demko, but they still allowed Utah to spend most of the game at the wrong end of the ice to start this game.

The highlight of the period was Thatcher Demko stoning Logan Cooley on a breakaway after Dylan Guenther won a puck along the wall and sprung his teammate for Utah’s best chance of the period.

It was such a snoozefest of a first period for the Canucks, that this was legitimately their best shot on goal.

Off to the second!

Special teams was a subject of the second, as both sides got their first power plays of the game. First, it was Erik Brännström, then it was Michael Kesselring for Utah.

With just six shots through 31 minutes of play, the Canucks sent out their first power play unit with no Elias Pettersson. Last game it was JT Miller who skated on PP2, but tonight, it was Pettersson.

And it was the second unit that opened the scoring, as Danton Heinen snapped the Canucks’ 10th shot of the game past Karel Vejmelka to make it 1-0 Canucks with five seconds remaining on the power play.

Then Utah got a power play, followed by another Canucks power play.

Already one-for-one on the night, the Canucks’ man-advantage unit snapped the puck around with speed and poise and came close to scoring on more than one occasion. They were cut off by the horn though, as the Canucks entered the third period up by a goal.

The third period opened with Dakota Joshua deking Vejmelka out of his jockstrap to push the Canucks’ lead to two.

So good to see Joshua get a goal. 2-0 Canucks. 

Thatcher Demko was great tonight, but one of his very miscues cost him, as Clayton Keller scooped up a puck Demko thought he had and put it past the Vancouver netminder to pull Utah within one late. 2-1.

The Canucks got another power play when Ian Cole was called for hauling down Brock Boeser, but the Canucks’ power play couldn’t convert.

Tyler Myers took a cross-checking penalty with just under five minutes remaining, giving Utah another power play and a prime opportunity to come back. But this was the call in question:

Remember, this was not a penalty over the weekend:

Dylan Guenther let go of a shot that turned into a knuckleball after hitting Teddy Blueger and beat a sliding Demko to get this game tied up at 2-2.

I rarely complain about officiating. It’s a hard job, and usually the calls even out where it doesn’t impact the outcomes of games all that much. But that’s two games in a row now where the Canucks have been called for “cross checks” that happen 100 times a game. Nobody would complain if there were any sort of consistency, but when it’s a complete crapshoot the way it is now, people are going to be annoyed. It’s just bad for the sport for officiating to be this much of a talking point.

This game needed overtime, but it wasn’t for a lack of trying, as Conor Garland nearly delivered the dagger in the dying moments of the third, and would have if not for Ian Cole’s stick:

In overtime, the two sides played a fast-paced tight-checking game, and Quinn Hughes and JT Miller nearly teamed up to put the final touches on this game. Then Boeser and Pettersson nearly did the same, and this was quickly turned into one of the best overtimes we’ve seen in some time. There were too many highlights to show, including a huge save from Thatcher Demko, but I’m certain all of them will be in The Stanchies tonight.

The one we unfortunately have to show you, is JT Miller’s saucer pass missing Conor Garland and sending Utah on an odd-man rush the other way that ultimately sealed this one and completed the comeback with three unanswered goals.

3-2 final.

See you all tomorrow!

Some more takeaways from tonight:

-Did anyone else’s eyes hurt from watching this game on TV? My goodness Utah, figure it out.
-Great to see Dakota Joshua score a goal tonight. It’s obviously been a tough go for him since returning from his cancer treatments, and everyone is rooting for him to keep having nights like these.
-Nils Höglander’s days just have to be numbered at this point. No points in 21 games, and I’m not even going to bother diving into the mistakes he made tonight. It’s been a pretty tragic but evident fall from grace for Höglander and I can’t see this ending in any way aside from a trade.
-Carson Soucy being the second defenceman over the boards in OT makes you realize just how much the Canucks miss Filip Hronek.
-Demko’s numbers didn’t show it through his first two starts, and he was certainly better in his last two starts, but it’s nice to see him settling in more. A few signs of rust tonight, but far more signs of the old Demko that we all know and love.
-9 multi-assist games for Quinn Hughes already this season. He remains better than everyone else.
-I’ve got a novel idea for the Canucks’ power play: put Pettersson, Miller, and Hughes on the same unit.
-First time the Canucks have held a multi-goal lead in a game and lost since game one of the season vs. Calgary.

What are your thoughts on tonight’s game?