"I didn't see guys competing": Tocchet calls out Canucks after brutal loss
The Vancouver Canucks’ perfect record has been snapped.
While no one thought the team would go 82-0, the fashion in which the Canucks lost on Tuesday night in Philadelphia was shocking.
“I can’t even pick one guy who played well other than [Thatcher] Demko who was unreal,” exclaimed head coach Rick Tocchet after the 2-0 shutout loss to the Flyers. “He was great tonight and the rest of the guys weren’t.”
Demko was the only reason why the scoreboard was close at all. He made 40 saves including this incredulous diving stop with his glove.
ABSOLUTE ROBBERY. pic.twitter.com/UEyjUMXp0Z
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) October 18, 2023
Besides Demko’s performance, there were not a lot of other standout — or even above average — individual performances.
“We’ve just got some guys, they better pick it up,” the head coach continued post-game. “I don’t want to use the word soft, but I didn’t see guys competing at all. And that’s alarming.”
“The compete wasn’t there. They competed, we didn’t. Bottom line.”
The worst part of the game was the second period when the Canucks were outshot 23-2. It was only because of Demko’s heroics that the score did not change in those 20 minutes.
The Canucks looked like a completely different team than the one that beat the Edmonton Oilers twice last week.
“It’s a good lesson. Who are we to think that we’re anybody?” Tocchet asked rhetorically.
The focus now moves to the next three games on this road trip where the Canucks play the Tampa Bay Lightning, Florida Panthers, and Nashville Predators. How will the team respond after their head coach publicly called them out for not competing?
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“I think in the past, this [the bad performance] is probably something that we overreact on. We probably let it get to us a little bit,” said Demko. “I think it’s a good challenge for us to show up in Florida and have two solid games down there… I’m not worried about it. I have all the confidence in the world that this year is going to be different and this team has matured.”
The Canucks will be hoping for a great start next game but will be facing one of the most successful NHL teams in recent history in the Lightning.
If there’s one player who knows what to expect against the Lightning on Thursday night, it’s veteran defenceman Ian Cole. He played 78 games for the franchise last season before signing with Vancouver in free agency last summer.
“Good teams don’t lose two, three, four [games] in a row. They don’t let that snowball,” Cole said. “I’m interested to see how we respond next time. We’re playing a really good hockey team in Tampa, a team that really knows how to win so it’s going to be a great challenge for us.”
Hear from Head Coach Rick Tocchet post-game against the Flyers.@theprovince | #Canucks pic.twitter.com/nALd2dCGRF
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) October 18, 2023
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