Vancouver Canucks lines vs. Calgary Flames (Oct. 3, 2026)
It’s been a while since the Calgary Flames and Vancouver Canucks were proper rivals.
In the eighties, the Canucks and Flames faced each other in the Stanley Cup Playoffs multiple times because of the divisional playoff format. Then there was the knock-down, drag-out seven-game battle in the first round of the 1994 playoffs that set the Canucks/Flames rivalry in stone.
But the Canucks and Flames have played each other just twice in the playoffs since 1994, and the rivalry has somewhat faded.
This season, however, that rivalry could kick up again, though for the opposite reason: the Canucks and Flames are the two favourites to finish last in the NHL and earn the best odds at picking first overall in the 2027 NHL Draft.
The four games the Canucks play against the Flames this season could be crucial for determining who comes out of their respective rebuilds the fastest, with the unfortunate reality being that losing those games will likely be better for each team in the long term.
That begins on Saturday night, when the Flames visit Vancouver for the first time this season.
The Canucks have had no issues scoring so far this season, with 13 goals in the first two games, but they could have a tougher time beating the Flames’ goaltending.
Vancouver Canucks projected lines
After shaking up the lines in Thursday’s game against the Edmonton Oilers, Manny Malhotra’s Canucks made even more changes at Friday’s practice at UBC.
It remains to be seen if they’ll use those same lines when the puck drops at Rogers Arena on Saturday night. But for now, here are the Canucks’ projected lines:
Marco Rossi – Elias Pettersson – Linus Karlsson
Liam Ăhgren – Paul Cotter – Brock Boeser
Arshdeep Bains – Max Sasson – Jonathan LekkerimĂ€ki
Drew O’Connor – Aatu RĂ€ty – Brendan Gallagher
Zeev Buium – Filip Hronek
Jamie Oleksiak – Tom Willander
Elias Pettersson – Luke Schenn
Leevi MerilÀinen
Kevin Lankinen
Jake DeBrusk was the extra skater at Friday’s practice, and he won’t play on Saturday, though Malhotra clarified that it isn’t a healthy scratch, as DeBrusk is ill.
That’s not too surprising: he sounded like he was coming down with something as early as Thursday, as his voice was hoarse after the morning skate.
That means Aatu RĂ€ty will come into the lineup for his first game of the season. He was a healthy scratch for the first two games with Max Sasson and Paul Cotter playing ahead of him down the middle.
Cotter has emerged as a legitimate option at centre and will play in a top-six role between Liam Ăhgren and Brock Boeser, where he finished Thursday’s game.
That frees up Marco Rossi to play on the wing with Elias Pettersson and Linus Karlsson. Rossi is tied with Cotter for the team lead in scoring, but has struggled with clearing the puck out of the defensive zone in dangerous situations, which isn’t ideal for a centre.
Additionally, Rossi will add a playmaking element to the top line that has perhaps been missing.
The Canucks’ starting goaltender is expected to be Leevi MerilĂ€inen. He’ll be making his first start as a Canuck after making his debut on Thursday in relief of Kevin Lankinen.
Calgary Flames projected lines
The Flames lost their season opener 6-1 to the Seattle Kraken, so they’ll be looking to bounce back with a stronger performance. Ryan Strome scored their lone goal.
Here are the Flames’ projected lines, courtesy of Flames play-by-play commentator Derek Wills:
Matvei Gridin – Morgan Frost – Matt Coronato
Samuel Honzek – Mikael Backlund – Joel Farabee
Brennan Othmann – Ryan Strome – Yegor Sharangovich
Maxim Tsyplakov – Martin Pospisil – Adam Klapka
Joel Hanley – Simon Nemec
Kevin Bahl – Zach Whitecloud
Jake Middleton – Zayne Parekh
Devin Cooley
Dustin Wolf
Zayne Parekh was the Flames’ most dangerous player when the Canucks faced them in the preseason. The Canucks will need to keep a close eye on the highly mobile and aggressive offensive defenceman.
The Flames’ starting goaltender is expected to be Devin Cooley.