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Canucks' new lines and defence pairs look regular-season ready

Rob Williams
Rob Williams
|
Oct 6 2023, 9:05 pm
Canucks' new lines and defence pairs look regular-season ready
@Canucks/X

Is this a preview of opening night? The Vancouver Canucks showed off some new-look lines ahead of tonight’s dress rehearsal — their final game of the preseason.

After weeks of experimentation, which included Nils Höglander and Vasily Podkolzin on the top two forward lines and the likes of Cole McWard and Noah Juulsen paired with Quinn Hughes, the new formation looks more regular-season ready.

With 24 healthy players left in camp, the Canucks need to make at least one more cut before Monday’s deadline. They’ll need to cut an additional player if Ilya Mikheyev comes off IR.

Here’s a look at the lines the Canucks rolled out this morning’s skate, shown below by Brendan Batchelor of Sportsnet 650:

The most notable move involves right-shot defenceman Filip Hronek pairing with Hughes. Head coach Rick Tocchet has been clear in his desire to pair left-handed defencemen with right-handed partners, but previously steered clear of pairing his most offensive-minded blueliners together.

The move bumps Tyler Myers up into the top-four, alongside Ian Cole. Carson Soucy and Juulsen look to be the third pair.

Guillaume Brisebois was “dinged up” last game, but would have skated otherwise, Tocchet told reporters.

It remains to be seen if these defence pairs will stick, as Tocchet was once again stressing a “committee” approach.

“We’re not scared to experiment,” Tocchet said.

Up front, it looks like Conor Garland is getting a promotion, playing alongside Elias Pettersson and Andrei Kuzmenko.

As for who will be cut, it seems likely that the remaining bubble players are all on the blue line. Nine defencemen are still in camp. They can trim that number down to eight, or seven if Ilya Mikheyev is ready to return.

The Canucks host the Calgary Flames tonight at Rogers Arena, with puck drop set for 7 pm PT. The regular season gets going for Vancouver on Wednesday when the Canucks host Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers.

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