The Vancouver Canucks took another step toward trimming the preseason roster on Wednesday morning, skating as one group at Rogers Arena with 26 players on the ice: 15 forwards, eight defencemen and three goalies. Max Sasson was excused from practice for personal reasons.
With the group down to a more manageable size, Manny Malhotra got his first chance this camp to work special teams with the main crew. After a 30-minute on-ice session to begin the day, the team came off while the ice was resurfaced, then returned to split into two power play units.
The top group looked familiar. Marco Rossi and Elias Pettersson handled the half-walls, Brock Boeser worked the bumper, Jake DeBrusk was set up at the net front and Filip Hronek ran the point. It was the same five-man setup that finished second in the NHL in power play percentage after the Olympic break.
The second unit brought a different look. Filip Chytil and Jonathan Lekkerimäki skated in the circles, Liam Öhgren got a shot in the bumper role, Linus Karlsson was stationed at the top of the crease and Zeev Buium manned the point by himself.
Öhgren is the notable addition there. He logged just 20 minutes of power play time in 51 games after coming over from Minnesota at mid-season, but he showed a quick release and stood out in Penticton.
Whether he can hang onto that spot remains to be seen.
The forward group also offered a clue about Thursday’s home preseason opener against Edmonton. Aatu Räty, Arshdeep Bains and Matthew Stienburg skated as a fifth line on Wednesday and have already played in both preseason games, which makes it likely the other four lines are the ones that dress.
That would mean first Canucks game action for newcomers Brendan Gallagher and Paul Cotter, who skated alongside Braeden Cootes. It would also be the first game action of any kind for Chytil since February 2 in Utah.
There should be more fresh faces on the blue line, too. Jamie Oleksiak is likely to make his first appearance in a Vancouver uniform on Thursday, and Luke Schenn - now in his third stint with the club - is set to wear Canucks colors for the first time since February 18, 2023.
In goal, the Canucks will likely turn to Nikita Tolopilo and Chris Driedger after Kevin Lankinen saw 31 shots on 83 attempts in Calgary on Tuesday. Malhotra did not reveal his goaltending plan after practice.
Malhotra said the pared-down roster was exactly what the staff had been waiting for.
“Well, this is a day we’ve been kind of looking forward to is getting down to the numbers that will most resemble our team on opening night. Obviously less bodies to manage and less practice planning required.
Just to get to our group and see the quality and level that we have in practice and start with that line combination chemistry. It was exciting today for practice just to be able to go through some more intricate details in our game was good for us.”
He also singled out Guillaume Brisebois for the way he has kept himself in the mix despite a long injury history.
“For Brise, it’s his level of consistency. He’s gone through a lot over his career injury-wise dealing with few major surgeries.
Without fail, he does the work and he gets himself back to game shape and proves that he is a contributor when he is in the line-up. So for me, it’s his level of consistency and professionalism that keeps him alive and keeps him around here.”
Chytil, meanwhile, sounded ready for his long-awaited return to game action after more than eight months away.
“It’s going to be fun. I can’t wait for it.
I feel good. We’ll see in the game how it’s going to go.
I’m excited. It’s been a long time for me.
It’s a lot of excitement in my whole body and my mind is ready for it as well.”
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