Injuries adding up already as Canucks call up Hirose
The Vancouver Canucks had their first game-day skate of the 2023-24 NHL season, and the injury bug is already having a major impact on the team’s lineup.
The club made a roster move earlier this morning, demoting forward Vasily Podkolzin down to the AHL while recalling defenceman Akito Hirose.
Hirose jumped right into the lineup, slotting in as the team’s third-pairing left defenceman alongside Noah Juulsen during the pre-game skate, shown below by Chris Faber of Canucks Army.
Line combinations from Wednesday morningās #CanucksĀ skate:
Kuzmenko-Pettersson-Garland
Di Giuseppe-Miller-Boeser
Joshua-Suter-Beauvillier
Hƶglander-Lafferty-MikheyevHughes-Hronek
Cole-Myers
Hirose-Juulsen pic.twitter.com/aBVy6xfjJG— ššµšæš¶š Faber š„š (@ChrisFaber39) October 11, 2023
While the Canucks lined up with the above combinations during the morning skate, their lineup will look a little different against the Oilers tonight as there are a couple of players that are game-time decisions.
Carson Soucy, Ilya Mikheyev, Teddy Blueger, and Guillaume Brisebois are all dealing with injuries at the moment, though it’s possible Soucy, Blueger, or Brisebois could play. Despite skating this morning, head coach Rick Tocchet told reporters that Mikheyev will not suit up tonight as he continues his rehab journey.
“He’s progressing,” Tocchet said in his media availability when asked about the Russian winger’s status. “He’s obviously close, he’s been working really hard.”
The head coach told the mediaĀ that Soucy skated earlier this morning, meaning he’s likely not that far from returning to play after suffering an ugly-looking leg injury last week. Whether he’s ready to go tonight remains up in the air.
Depending on the status of those three players ā Soucy, Blueger, and Brisebois ā the Canucks could be short a man tonight. As per Farhan Lalji of TSN, even Tocchet himself isn’t sure if he’ll have 17 or 18 players ready to play against the Oilers.
Tocchet says the injured guys that skated this morning (Blueger, Soucy & Brisebois) will be game time decisions. Have additional tests to go through. Tocchet isnāt sure if heāll have 17 or 18 skaters tonight yet. #Canucks @TSNHockey
— Farhan Lalji (@FarhanLaljiTSN) October 11, 2023
“We’ll know at seven o’clock tonight [if we have a full lineup]. We’ve got a couple of guys who’ve got to test in the next hour or two,” the head coach responded when asked about his roster size for tonight.
If Blueger doesn’t suit up, the Canucks will have 11 natural forwards and will either need to promote a defenceman or cycle through pairs of wingers. His status remains unclear.
“We’ve got to get a test on him [Blueger]. You know he’s a heart and soul type of guy and I don’t want to jeopardize him so we’ll see how he feels later,” Tocchet said after the skate this morning.
Another notable takeaway from Wednesday morning’s line combinations is that Conor Garland is once again skating on the top line. The winger was in the news yesterday after it was reported that his agent had been granted permission to seek a trade around the league.
Garland now finds himself in the desirable position of playing third wheel to the dynamic duo of Elias Pettersson and Andrei Kuzmenko, offering a great chance to put up big numbers.
The newly acquired Sam Lafferty centred the team’s fourth line before his Canucks debut.
The Canucks face off against Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers as a tough first test on their journey towards the Stanley Cup, with puck drop after 7 pm PT.