Bruins 4 Canucks 0: 'Must' game becomes bust game BY JASON BOTCHFORD, THE PROVINCE DECEMBER 6, 2015 There is always a significant risk when a coach puts emphasis on a particular game. Like, what happens if things blow up? Because the Canucks blew up Saturday and they blew up real good. Canucks head coach Willie Desjardins essentially took out a red marker and circled the Boston Bruins game like it was somehow vitally important. He called it a "must" game. Turns out, it was the bust game. The fog the Canucks are in only worsened, thanks in part to Jacob Markstrom's glove hand which apparently got lost on this mountain Vancouver is trying to climb. Three times the Bruins went high glove side and came away with goals. One was from 60-feet out. Another, from an ugly angle. For this fragile Canucks team, it doesn't take much to check out, and check out they did. Now, why Desjardins would call this a "must" game and then start his backup is almost as strange as the goals that beat the goalie. If this game was so important, why was Ryan Miller sitting on the bench? Of course, any attention on the goalies takes away from the real problems here. The Canucks are slow. Their breakouts are both predictable and sloppy, which is not a good combination. The Sedins hot streak was bound to come to an end, and when it did Saturday, there was nothing.
The team didn't play defence. The forwards barely even threatened. And the tough guy, Derek Dorsett, fought Zac Rinaldo of all guys, when all this town cares about is getting a piece of Brad Marchand. Instead, Marchand scored the opener before the game was three minutes old. And that was the game, folks. Thanks for coming out. Before the game, you could get a ticket into the building for $25. You could get lower bowl seats for $40. All the Canucks can do is hope this was the low point of the season. If it wasn't, this is going to be a long, long year. WHAT THIS MEANS When it comes to the Austin Matthews sweepstakes, the Canucks are in it. They have the fewest regulation wins in the NHL. In the Western Conference, they are four points up on the Calgary Flames and the Edmonton Oilers. But does anyone right now believe they are a better team? The NHL changed its draft lottery system this year, so even if the bottom were to fall out and the Canucks finished with the worst record in the league, they would only have a 20% chance to win the lottery and the first-overall pick. If a Sedin is hurt for any length of time, the Canucks are going to have a really difficult time competing. It's not hard to envision a scenario where they are right there with the Oilers in January at the bottom of the Western Conference. Maybe that changes when Brandon Sutter comes back. If it does dramatically, he may get some MVP votes. WHAT WE LEARNED
People can talk about the Canucks scoring woes and focus on the lack of secondary scoring all they want. It's not like it isn't an issue. But it is not the team's core problem. This defence is just not good enough. The team has three legitimate top six blueliners in Alex Edler, Chris Tanev and Dan Hamhuis. Luca Sbisa doesn't crack the top six and maybe not the top seven on the 2011 team. Yannick Weber is a No. 7. Matt Bartkowski doesn't start on a good team. Ben Hutton is still a question mark. And here's the kicker, the likelihood the Canucks trade Hamhuis increases the further they get from the playoff bar. ADVANCED STATS 1: The number of even strength goals a line other than the Sedins have produced for the Canucks in the past nine games. Finding secondary scoring has been an issue for years, but never quite this bleak. If the Sedins don't do anything, turn the lights out. 5: The number of times Sven Baertschi has been a healthy scratch this season after he sat out Saturday's game. Baertschi hasn't been productive enough to warrant a spot in the top six. Where he fits in with this team in the long run is anyone's guess. 44.26: The percentage of scoring chances the Canucks get when Sven Baertschi is on the ice. For comparison, Jake Virtanen's percentage is 47.37. 40.26: This is the number of even strength unblocked shot attempts the Canucks produce every 60 minutes Ben Hutton is on the ice. He leads the defence. In his first two months in the NHL, he's been pretty critical to the Canucks. IN A WORD
WALKED: There are lots of plays to point to which show just how poorly the Canucks' blueline is playing. But probably none more telling than when Ryan Spooner walked Matt Bartkowski with ease for a scoring chance. BOOO: That's what several did in a game that was not well attended by Canucks fans. Markstrom even got a Bronx cheer for one of his easier saves. Fans are not too happy having to sit through that. STUMPS: That's how you would describe Brandon Prust's skates if you saw Marchand dance around him in the first period. Marchand had his way with the Canucks all game. Willes: How low can the Canucks go? As depressing as the story was on the ice, it might have been worse in the stands BY ED WILLES, THE PROVINCE DECEMBER 6, 2015 It's hard to know what constitutes a full-blown crisis in this market because such weighty issues as the fourth-line's ice time is often enough to trigger mass hysteria among the faithful. Still, there's something about the Canucks' current situation which registers as something far more serious than those petty talk-show intrigues which pass for controversy. Saturday night, in a game head coach Willie Desjardins billed as a must, well, something for his team, the locals surrendered a goal on the game's first shot to arch-villain Brad Marchand no less and meekly capitulated to the Boston Bruins 4-0. The Canucks now have three wins in their last 16 games, which is concerning enough. But it's the larger image the lifelessness, the lack of initiative, the sense that this team has run out of ideas 27 games into the season which is far more troubling. This streak has done a number of things to damage the sensitive balance between this franchise and its fan base. But, mostly it's reawakened the nightmare images from the Year of Torts; a year in which the Canucks' brand suffered severe damage. Can it withstand another season like that? The sad truth is we might be in the process of finding out.
Three minutes into Saturday game, Radim Vrbata turned the puck over at the Canucks' blueline. leading to a sequence which ended with the evil Marchand snapping a wrister over Jacob Markstrom's glove hand. And that was pretty much it for drama on this night. Sure, there were 57 more minutes to kill. But they played out in what's become a familiar and predictable pattern. Four minutes after Marchand's goal, Torey Krug blew a slapper over Markstrom's glove hand. Midway through the second, Landon Ferraro beat Markstrom, you guessed it, over his glove hand to make it 3-0 for the Beantowners, who were playing their second game in as many nights. To that point, the Bruins had 10 shots on goal. Someone named Tyler Randell who wears No. 64 also scored in the third period. The Canucks, for their part, had 12 shots through the first two periods without producing anything resembling a scoring chance and ended up with 17 shots on Boston goalie Tuukka Rusk, who may or may not have needed a shower after the game. In their last three games, the Canucks produced 16, 16 and 17 shots on goal. Yes, the more we think about it, the more this is a full-blown crisis. "Again, we're obviously not good enough," said Jannik Hansen. "We're missing a lot of things. Turnovers, not getting the puck out, we're not creating enough. "We have to go back to keeping it simple. We don't have the skill on this team to rely (on skill). We have to rely on hard work and system." If only it was that simple. But, as depressing as the story was on the ice, it might have been worse in the stands and that's the other takeaway from the latest loss. On a Saturday night against a team that was once considered the Canucks' blood rival, there was no life or energy in Rogers Arena. There were, however, patches of empty seats all over the lower bowl and that doesn't figure to change with the state of the on-ice product. The Canucks were once bullet-proof in this market. Between 2002 and 2014, they sold out 474 consecutive games while generally playing exciting, entertaining hockey.
Those days now seem like a distant memory, but look at the bright side. Sort of. When you assess the NHL standings, you're hard pressed to find a team, any team, to which the Canucks are demonstrably superior. That means the race for the first overall pick this season might be a lot more interesting that the race for the playoffs which might be the best thing for this team in the long run. As for the short run, well, the Aquilini ownership hasn't exactly demonstrated patience over the years when things go south. That might mean the fun is just starting. Losing continues for Canucks after 4-0 loss to Bruins Vancouver falls behind early and drops 4-0 decision to Bruins By Brad Ziemer, Vancouver Sun December 6, 2015 Last month, the Vancouver Canucks paid tribute to the Vancouver Grizzlies. Now they re starting to play like their former NBA brethren. The Canucks, like the good, old Grizz, almost never win anymore. They lost again Saturday night, dropping a 4-0 decision to the Boston Bruins at Rogers Arena in a game their coach had called a must game. The loss was Vancouver s fifth straight. The Canucks have two wins in their last 12 games and their home record is now 3-6-3. No one in the NHL has fewer than their nine wins this season. Not even the Toronto Maple Leafs and Carolina Hurricanes, who both earned their ninth victories of the season Saturday night. We haven t learned from Game 1 to Game 28 that in this league you can t win games when you keep turning the puck over, said Vancouver captain Henrik Sedin. To allow the other team to have to make zero effort to get scoring chances, that can t happen. It just keeps happening to us. It s not good enough and we have to get back to basics. This one was over early. The Bruins scored on their first shot on Vancouver goalie Jacob Markstrom, who had a rough night. After Radim Vrbata turned the puck over at his own blue line, Patrice Bergeron fed a pass to Brad Marchand and the Bruin Canuck fans love to hate beat Markstrom high glove from the right circle at the 2:51 mark of the first. Just over four minutes later, Boston defenceman Torey Krug wired a one-timer from the right point past Markstrom to give the Bruins a 2-0 lead. Again, high glove. Rookie Landon Ferraro beat Markstrom -- yes, high glove -- with a wrist shot from the right circle at 8:02 of the second period to put Boston up 3-0. The Rogers Arena faithful serenaded Markstrom with the Bronx cheer the next couple of times he made a save. It was a tough one, Markstrom said. I was coming off a good game and feeling good and then I let in four. It s tough.
At the other end of the ice, the Canucks couldn t get anything going offensively. During this current five-game losing streak, they have managed just five goals. Coach Willie Desjardins acknowledged that his team did not respond the way he had hoped to his suggestion that Saturday s game was a very important one. We are not getting what we need, Desjardins said. We have to be hungrier, we have to win the battles. The Bruins, who played Friday night in Calgary, were supposed to be the tired team. But it was the Canucks who looked slow and played with little energy. Henrik Sedin said the Canucks are an easy team to play against right now and his coach did not disagree. I think Henrik is a pretty smart guy, Desjardins said. He gets a pretty good read on the game and a pretty good feel for the game. I think when you play without confidence and you are not skating, that is a real bad combination...you have to play hard, you have to play physical, you have to battle, and I don t think our physical and battle levels are high enough. Obviously, it is frustrating, added Vancouver winger Alex Burrows. We are not playing well and we are not playing smart. The last few games we have been turning pucks over in key areas, in breakouts in the neutral zone, right through the middle, and giving the other team easy chances. I thought they played a smart game. They were the tired team and sat four guys back in the neutral zone and made it real tough for us to get through the neutral zone. We got impatient, we tried to make plays and then they d come right back at us. The Bruins made it 4-0 at 11:32 of the third, when they caught the Canucks in full fire-drill mode in front of the Vancouver net. Tyler Randell scored off a scramble. Boston goalie Tuukka Rask had to make just 17 saves for his third shutout of the season The Canucks fell to 9-11-8 on the season. The Bruins, who improved to 14-8-3, are now 9-2-2 on the road. ICE CHIPS: Rookie defenceman Ben Hutton returned after missing seven games with a lower-body injury. Winger Chris Higgins returned after missing two games with an upper-body injury...the Canucks played without injured defenceman Luca Sbisa (hand) for the second straight game. Winger Sven Baertschi and defenceman Alex Biega were healthy scratches for Vancouver, which plays host to the Buffalo Sabres on Monday night. Rask shuts door as Bruins blank Canucks The Canadian Press VANCOUVER - The Vancouver Canucks fell flat in a game head coach Willie Desjardins said they needed to have. Tuukka Rask was rarely tested in making 17 saves for his third shutout of the season and the 29th of his career as the Boston Bruins defeated Vancouver 4-0 on Saturday. Desjardins called the game a "must" in the wake of Thursday's 4-2 defeat to the Dallas Stars, but his team failed to respond on the way to losing its fifth in a row. "When you're playing without confidence and you're not skating, that's a real bad combination," he said. "You've got to play hard, you've got to play physical, you've got to battle. I don't think our physical and battle levels are high enough."
Vancouver (9-11-8) has now dropped 13 of its last 16 and is in danger of seeing the season slip away if things don't start to turn around soon. "There's got to be something in you where you just hate to lose," said Desjardins. "I always say if you accept losing you'll lose. You just will. There has to be something where you just won't accept it. You'll find a way, your hunger level will be higher. We've let that slip a little bit." Landon Ferraro, with a goal and an assist, Brad Marchand, Torey Krug and Tyler Randell scored for Boston (14-8-3), which was playing for the third time in four nights following Friday's 5-4 overtime loss in Calgary. "When you look at games like tonight you really see what this team, when it puts its mind to it, is capable of," said Bruins head coach Claude Julien. "Hopefully these kinds of wins solidifies the fact we know what we need to do to have success." Jacob Markstrom got the start ahead of Ryan Miller for Vancouver, but allowed four goals on 22 shots, including three to the glove side. "We have to stick together," said Markstrom. "It feels terrible right now. It's been a lot time since I've been this disappointed." Rask served as the backup to Tim Thomas when Boston beat Vancouver in the 2011 Stanley Cup final, and picked up his first victory at Rogers Arena after giving up four goals in each of the Bruins' last two visits. "We were in the system the whole game and it showed," said Rask. "All the shots they had were from the outside or not very difficult shots so that's a good sign." Markstrom made 38 saves in Tuesday's 2-1 overtime loss in Los Angeles, but was beaten on the first shot of the game from Marchand at 2:54 of the opening period. One of the villains for Vancouver fans during the 2011 final, Marchand ripped his 13th of the season shortside after a turnover before Krug blasted a one-timer from the point that flew in past Markstrom for his third at 7:03. "We haven't learned from Game 1 to Game 28 that in this league you can't win games when you keep turning the puck over," said Canucks captain Henrik Sedin. "To have the other team put in zero effort to get scoring chances, that can't happen, and it keeps happening to us. It's not good enough." The Canucks generated almost nothing in front of Rask at the other end, and the Bruins put things to bed at 8:02 of the second when Ferraro's weak effort from the right-wing boards fluttered past Markstrom for his second of the season.
After allowing three goals on just seven shots, Markstrom got a Bronx cheer from fans on his next save. "He's had some real good games," said Desjardins. "He'd probably like to have a couple back tonight." Rask's only difficult save came early in the third period on Bo Horvat before Randell bagged his fourth at 11:32 as the Bruins snapped at two-game slide. "Boston played a good game, but we're not getting what we need," said Desjardins. "We've got to be hungrier." Notes: Vancouver forward Brandon Prust speared Marchand late in the third period and was handed a 10-minute misconduct.... Canucks rookie defenceman Ben Hutton returned to the lineup after missing seven games with a lower-body injury.... Bruins defenceman Adam McQuaid left in the first period after blocking a shot with his left arm and didn't return.... Marchand played in his 400th NHL game.... The Canucks continue a four-game homestand Monday against Buffalo. Rask, Bruins shut out Canucks in road trip finale Saturday, 12.05.2015 / 11:53 PM Kevin Woodley - NHL.com Correspondent VANCOUVER -- The Boston Bruins got back to their defensive roots just in time for a happy ending to an otherwise uncharacteristic, disappointing three-game Western Canada road trip. After getting caught up playing a wide open style during two losses in Alberta, Boston scored early and then shut things down against the slumping Vancouver Canucks on Saturday. Brad Marchand and Torey Krug scored on Boston's first four shots, Tuukka Rask made 17 saves and the Bruins wrapped up their trip with a 4-0 win at Rogers Arena. "That should be something we take from this game, that you don't have to play run-and-gun to score a lot of goals," said Rask, who estimated Vancouver had "maybe four or five" scoring chances. "We were on them all over the ice and that takes a lot of offense away from the other time, so today was a great example of Bruins hockey." The Bruins got away from that style during a 3-2 shootout loss to the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday and a 5-4 overtime loss against the Calgary Flames on Friday. But Boston didn't look tired against the Canucks, capitalizing on early scoring chances and taking away open ice for the rest of the game. "When we are playing back-and-forth games and run-and-gun then it doesn't play to our favor, so we have to continue to play like this," Marchand said. Landon Ferraro scored eight minutes into the second period and assisted on Tyler Randell's goal with 8:28 left for the Bruins, who are 7-0-2 in the past nine games. "We have a tendency sometimes to be hard on our team because we don't do it all the time, and yet when you look at games like tonight you really see what this team, when it puts its mind to it, is capable of," Bruins coach Claude Julien said. "These kind of wins for me solidify the fact we know what we need to do to have success and hopefully we embrace the style of play that's given us success." Vancouver hasn't had much success lately.
The Canucks have lost five straight and have three wins in the past 16 games. They turned to goalie Jacob Markstromahead of veteran Ryan Miller, but he allowed three goals on the glove side on the first seven shots before finishing with 18 saves. Markstrom, who was coming off an impressive 38-save performance in a 2-1 overtime loss to the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday, didn't have much chance on Marchand's quick early shot and said he didn't see Krug's one-timer from the point. "I was very frustrated, coming off a good game, feeling good, then to let in four. It's tough," Markstrom said. "The first one was a quick shot that disappeared top-shelf. The second one was a screen. Maybe I have to go practice the glove tomorrow." Canucks coach Willie Desjardins challenged his team, calling it a "must game," but they barely tested Rask. His toughest save came on a by Bo Horvat one-timer early in the third period to preserve his third shutout of the season and 29th of his career. "You've got to play hard, you've got to play physical, you've got to battle," Desjardins said. "I don't think our physical and battle levels are high enough." Marchand scored on the first shot 2:54 into the game after Patrice Bergeron stole the puck from Radim Vrbata just inside the Vancouver blue line. Bergeron skated down the left side before passing cross-ice to Marchand, who shot it in one sweeping motion over the shoulder of a sliding Markstrom for his eighth goal in the past nine games. Bruins defenseman Kevan Miller returned after missing seven games because of a concussion. But Adam McQuaid left seven minutes into the game, holding his left arm after getting hit by a Jared McCann shot from in front of the Boston net. The Bruins kept play going the other way and Krug doubled the lead while McQuaid was leaving for the dressing room, one-timing a Miller feed past Markstrom from the right point. Ferraro made it 3-0 with a long wrist shot off the rush that Markstrom missed with his glove eight minutes into the second period. "I gave them one," Markstrom said. "I can't be making those mistakes. We have to stick together. You need a hot goalie to come in and play really good to help you. We need something, we need some spark. I know this group has it. We are having a rough time finding it right now.... It's been a lot time since I've been this disappointed." Ferraro, a British Columbia native, helped set up Randell's goal in a goalmouth scramble with 8:28 left. "You always dream about scoring a goal in front of your family in your home town," said Ferraro, who had his father (former NHL player Ray Ferraro), mother and grandparents at the game. "To be able to do that is pretty exciting." Brandon Prust was given a 10-minute misconduct after spearing Marchand with 1:53 left, dropping the Bruins forward to his knees for several minutes. "Just kind of gave me a jab and got me," said Marchand, who finished the game. Julien expects the NHL Department of Player Safety to review the play. "I saw the spear on the replay and we'll let the League decide what they want to do, but I don't know what prompted him to do that at that stage," he said. "I don't see everything on the ice but it's not something you want to see, especially at that time of the game." Five takeaways: Vancouver Canucks still searching for answers after loss to Boston Bruins By: Cam Tucker Metro Published on Sat Dec 05 2015 The Vancouver Canucks, in a swoon since early November, may have just hit rock bottom with a loss to the visiting Boston Bruins on Saturday.
Pouring salt in already gaping wound that is getting worse basically every second day, Brad Marchand, a detested figure in Vancouver dating back to the 2011 Stanley Cup Final, opened the scoring early in the first period for the Bruins. It got worse from there, as the Canucks dropped their second game on this four-game home stand with a 4-0 loss to Boston at Rogers Arena. After Vancouver's fifth straight loss, here are the five takeaways: NOT A BANNER NIGHT FOR JACOB MARKSTROM Twice in the second period, fans directed a Bronx cheer towards starting goaltender Jacob Markstrom, after he gave up three goals on seven shots. The third goal, which drew the ire of the locals, was particularly suspect. Charging down the right wing, Bruins forward Landon Ferraro fired a wrist shot that beat Markstrom short side on the glove hand, upping Boston s lead on just its seventh shot of the game, 8:02 into the second period. After that, the game was over, Markstrom said. The next two Boston shots provoked a sarcastic round of applause from the faithful as Markstrom successfully turned both attempts aside. I was kind of looking into the middle to see if there was a left-handed or right-handed (shot) coming in, if they wanted to shoot for a rebound, said Markstrom. And I was just going to catch it and I completely missed it. A mental error for my part. There was a theme to how the Bruins picked Markstrom apart. Three of the four goals against Markstrom were on the glove side, including two over his left shoulder in the first period. First, it was Marchand ripping one top corner from the slot, and then defenceman Torey Krug on a slap shot from the point less than five minutes later. The Bruins exited the first period up two goals on just five shots an insurmountable deficit for the offensively inept Canucks to overcome. SHOTS ON NET, ANYONE? Another disturbing pattern for the Canucks: A complete and utter lack of an offensive attack beyond the top line of the Sedin twins Daniel and Henrik and Jannik Hansen. (And even that trio struggled Saturday when going against the towering six-foot-nine-inch Bruins captain Zdeno Chara.) In the last two games prior to Saturday, the Canucks had a combined 32 shots on goal. You don t have to be a hockey savant to know that s a recipe for failure. Against the Bruins, the Canucks had five shots in the first period two from defenceman Yannick Weber that included a lazy wrist shot from centre ice that just happened to hit goalie Tuukka Rask in his padding and ended the game with just 17. The prevailing wisdom, at least according to the Sedin twins, are turnovers and an inability to play strong defensively. Strong defensive play will then transition to strong offence. I think the only way to score in this league is to get pucks deep, make the other team turn it over, said Daniel Sedin.
Right now, we re the team turning pucks over and the other teams are getting easy scoring chances. Make the simple play and get confidence from playing simple and working hard. I think we ve got to stop throwing pucks in the middle. We re making it way too hard on ourselves. As per a graph on hockeystats.ca, the Canucks had two separate prolonged instances four minutes and 13 seconds, and five minutes and 16 seconds without a shot attempt in that opening period. We re not the most skilled team in this league, said Henrik Sedin. You re not going to win games by making three, four, five passes and get a scoring chance. That s not the way you win on a consistent basis. If you give up three, four goals and you have a goal-scoring average of just over 2.5 (Vancouver is averaging 2.63 goals per game) you re not going to win games. That s a concerning, especially when it happens on home ice, where the Canucks are now 3-6-3. A MUST GAME? The Canucks must ve missed the memo about this being, in the words of head coach Willie Desjardins a few nights ago, a must game. Basically, it was a message from the coach the Canucks must play better, with a more inspired effort, than what they had shown in the three previous losses to Anaheim, L.A. and Dallas. Again, maybe they didn t get that memo? The Bruins played the night before. In Calgary. They lost. In overtime. Saturday s game in Vancouver marked their third in four days. The Canucks didn t take advantage. In fact, it actually looked like they couldn t take advantage. It looked like they were incapable. Even a tired team can emerge with a victory at the end of a trip, usually on the strength of great goaltending. Rask didn t need to be great for the Bruins on Saturday. All he needed to be was adequate. And that s exactly what he was, because the Canucks barely challenged him. The Canucks ventilated their frustration late, with Brandon Prust appearing to spear Marchand away from the play. GIVEAWAYS PROVE COSTLY Radim Vrbata has experienced plenty of bad luck in the offensive zone this season. But a veteran player of his calibre making a bad giveaway at his own blue line, leading to the Marchand goal seconds later, is inexcusable. And from a bad start, the night would get worse for the Canucks. IS THIS REALLY ROCK BOTTOM? Take a quick glance at the NHL standings. On second thought, maybe don t do that. The Canucks are now tied with the Toronto Maple Leafs and Carolina Hurricanes for the fewest amount of wins (9) in the NHL. They re also 22 nd in the league with 26 points. Are the Auston Matthews sweepstakes heating up already? Rask has 17 saves for 3rd shutout as Bruins beat Canucks
VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) The Boston Bruins gave coach Claude Julien a glimpse of how good they can be. Now, he hopes they can keep it going. Tukka Rask stopped 17 shots for his third shutout of the season and the 29th of his career as the Bruins beat the Vancouver Canucks 4-0 on Saturday night. "When you look at games like tonight you really see what this team, when it puts its mind to it, is capable of," Julien said. "Hopefully these kinds of wins solidifies the fact we know what we need to do to have success." Landon Ferraro had a goal and an assist, and Brad Marchand, Torey Krug and Tyler Randell also scored for the Bruins. Boston, coming off a 5-4 overtime loss at Calgary on Friday, was playing for the third time in four nights. The Bruins snapped a two-game slide (0-0-2) that followed a five-game win streak to close out November. Rask, the backup to Tim Thomas when Boston beat Vancouver in the 2011 Stanley Cup final, picked up his first victory at Rogers Arena after giving up four goals in each of the Bruins' last two visits. "We were in the system the whole game and it showed," Rask said. "All the shots they had were from the outside or not very difficult shots so that's a good sign." Jacob Markstrom got the start ahead of Ryan Miller and finished with 18 stops for the Canucks, who have lost five straight and 13 of their last 16. "We have to stick together," Markstrom said. "It feels terrible right now. It's been a lot time since I've been this disappointed." Vancouver coach Willie Desjardins called the game a "must" in the wake of Thursday's 4-2 defeat to Dallas, but the Canucks didn't look ready to compete from the opening faceoff. "When you're playing without confidence and you're not skating, that's a real bad combination," Desjardins said. "You've got to play hard, you've got to play physical, you've got to battle. I don't think our physical and battle levels are high enough." Vancouver has now dropped 13 of its last 16 and is in danger of seeing the season slip away if things don't start to turn around soon. "There's got to be something in you where you just hate to lose," Desjardins said. "I always say if you accept losing you'll lose. You just will. There has to be something where you just won't accept it. You'll find a way, your hunger level will be higher. We've let that slip a little bit." Markstrom made 38 saves in Tuesday's 2-1 overtime loss in Los Angeles, but was beaten on the first shot of the game from Marchand at 2:54 of the opening period.
One of the villains for Vancouver fans during the 2011 final, Marchand took a feed from Patrice Bergeron and ripped his 13th of the season. Boston doubled its lead at 7:03 when Krug blasted a one-timer from the point that flew in past Markstrom for his third. "We haven't learned from Game 1 to Game 28 that in this league you can't win games when you keep turning the puck over," Canucks captain Henrik Sedin said. "To have the other team put in zero effort to get scoring chances, that can't happen, and it keeps happening to us. It's not good enough." Vancouver's first genuine chance came just under two minutes into the second when defenseman Yannick Weber tested Rask from the slot. Ferraro made it 3-0 at 8:02 when his weak shot from the right-wing boards off the rush fluttered past Markstrom for his second goal of the season. The first three Boston goals beat Markstrom over the glove, and he got a sarcastic cheer from fans on his next save. "He's had some real good games," Desjardins said. "He'd probably like to have a couple back tonight." Rask came on in relief of Jonas Gustavsson against the Flames, and had a relatively quiet night in this one, but did have to make a nice stop on Vancouver's Bo Horvat 5 minutes into the third to keep the shutout alive Randell knocked in his fourth with 8:28 left in the third. "Boston played a good game, but we're not getting what we need," Desjardins said. "We've got to be hungrier." NOTES: The Canucks have allowed at least three goals in 14 of their last 16 games.... There are eight players left on both the Boston and Vancouver rosters from the 2011 final.... Canucks rookie D Ben Hutton returned to the lineup after missing seven games with a lower-body injury.... Bruins D Adam McQuaid left in the first period after blocking a shot with his left arm and didn't return.... Marchand played in his 400th NHL game. Coach shakes up Bruins, and they respond with win By Amalie Benjamin GLOBE STAFF DECEMBER 06, 2015 VANCOUVER, British Columbia If it wasn t clear by coach Claude Julien s words on Saturday morning that the night s game in Vancouver was an important one, it was crystal clear by the time the lineup sheets came out.
Out were Dennis Seidenberg, Colin Miller, and Jimmy Hayes. In were Kevan Miller, Joe Morrow, and Zac Rinaldo. For Morrow, it was his first game since Nov. 5 in Washington. He had been a healthy scratch in 12 consecutive games. So, no, Julien would not stand for the effort that the Bruins had put forward in the first two games of the series, games in which the team had suffered a shootout loss and an overtime loss to two of the worst teams in the NHL. Whatever Julien did or said, it worked. Boston didn t repeat the failures on Saturday night, against a team tied for the fewest wins in the NHL this season. The Bruins won, 4-0, over the Canucks at Rogers Arena to move to 6-0-2 in their last eight games. We played a real good game tonight, said Julien. We have a tendency sometimes to be hard on our team because we don t do it all the time, and yet when you look at games like tonight, you really see what this team, when it really sets its mind to it, is capable of. The Bruins put together a complete defensive effort, one night after sloppiness in the defensive zone led to an overtime loss in Calgary. Our forwards along the wall were solid tonight, our [defensemen] were making real good decisions with the puck to help us get those out, Julien said.... There was a real solid commitment from everybody to protect that area. It wasn t long before one of the inserted players, Rinaldo, tried to do something to jump-start his team, dropping the gloves with Derek Dorsett just 2:07 into the game. Perhaps it worked, with Brad Marchand scoring his third goal in two nights 47 seconds later. The feed came from Patrice Bergeron and Marchand one-timed it past Jacob Markstrom for his 13th of the season.
They built on the lead, too, with Torey Krug converting on a slap shot from beyond the right circle at 7:03. But just before that, something more troublesome happened. Adam McQuaid made a big block at the other side of the ice on Vancouver s Jared McCann, with the puck popping up off his left wrist. McQuaid bent over in pain immediately and came off the ice, heading right down the tunnel. He did not return to the game. Landon Ferraro made it made it 3-0 at 8:02 of the second period, beating Markstrom with a wrister high for his second goal of the season from just outside the right faceoff dot. And Tyler Randell, who played just four shifts on Friday night in Calgary, scored his fourth goal of the season to provide some breathing room at 11:32 of the third. Combined with a relatively easy shutout from Tuukka Rask his third of the season the Bruins did everything they needed to do against the Canucks. We weren t running around out of place. We were within the system pretty much the whole game, Rask said. That shows that they only had 17 shots on net and all the shots they had were from the outside or not very difficult shots. That s a good sign. So the Bruins returned to Boston on Sunday with another challenging week ahead, starting with the Predators on Monday and continuing in Montreal on Wednesday, but in a much better frame of mind than that which they had entered Vancouver. It s big, David Krejci said before the win. This is the difference between a successful and really disappointing road trip. If the Bruins had gotten just 2 points on the trip, if they had lost in Vancouver, Julien said he would have qualified it as a failure.
If we want to stay in the run, and if we want to continue to be a playoff team, I think these are the kind of games you ve got to win, Julien said. That was exactly what they did. These kind of wins for me just solidifies the fact that we know what we need to do to have success, said Julien, and hopefully we embrace the style of play that s given us success. Energy, determination get Bruins back on track out West Stephen Harris Sunday, December 06, 2015 VANCOUVER The Bruins badly needed two things last night as their three-game western Canada trip came to an end against the young, struggling Canucks: A strong, all-round team game, and two points. They got both, bouncing back from two far-too-loose showings in Calgary and Edmonton to play a solid three-zone game and dominate the Canucks, 4-0. Goalie Tuukka Rask (17 saves; shutout No. 3; 29th career) was supported with a strong effort in front of him, as his mates slowed the Canucks, mostly kept them to the outside, allowed minimal shots, blocked many and gave up very few good scoring chances. Brad Marchand (No. 13), Torey Krug (3), Landon Ferraro (2) and Tyler Randell (4) scored the B s goals the latter two guys part of a fourth line that provided tons of energy and determination all night. Vancouver s Brandon Prust likely faces a significant suspension after his vicious, awayfrom-the-play jab to the groin of Marchand with 1:53 left. Zac Rinaldo had two fights with Derek Dorsett.
The B s thus fly home after a 1-0-2 trip which should have been better, but certainly ends on a very positive note. Now, if the B s can make performances such as last night s commonplace, they ll be well back on track. I think anytime you can go from a western trip with 4-of-6 points, that s not a bad trip, coach Claude Julien said before the game. That s the opportunity we have. We definitely have to be better than we have been in those first two games. This is the opportunity to go back home with a positive result. Where we stand right now, if we go back with 4-of-6 (points), it s a pretty successful trip. If it (were) 2-of-6, it s a failure in my mind. If we want to stay in the (race) and you want to continue to be a playoff team, these are the kind of games you ve got to win. The B s had to play most of the night with just five defensemen, after Adam McQuaid left early in the first and did not return. The oft-injured McQuaid, who has played every game this season, sprawled in front of his net to block a Jared McCann shot, appearing to take the puck off his left wrist. Julien, dissatisfied with the B s play in Calgary and Edmonton, sent a none-too-subtle message to his team when he scratched Dennis Seidenberg, Jimmy Hayes and Colin Miller for the game putting Joe Morrow and Kevan Miller back in. It was evident from the first shift that the B s understood the importance of this game and came ready to play. Just 2:07 in, fourth-liner Rinaldo did his part to provide an emotional spark, taking on veteran pug Dorsett in a pretty good fight. The B s came out playing a high-energy style, getting into the O-zone and working hard to pressure the Canucks and keep pucks in. At 2:54, Morrow and Patrice Bergeron turned back a home team breakout near the blue line. Bergeron moved down the left side and backhanded a nice cross-ice pass to Marchand in the right circle. His quick one-time snap was in the high short-side in an instant. The puck got stuck up high in the twine and goalie Jacob Markstrom was
looking left and right to try and figure out where the puck went even as Marchand & Co. celebrated nearby. The B s doubled their lead at 7:03, when Krug s slapper from right point cleanly beat Markstrom on the glove side. The goalie was not happy to give this one up. The goalie had to be even more annoyed with himself at 8:02 of the second, when Ferraro, on right wing of a routine-looking 3-on-3 line rush, snapped a wrister from the right circle that beat the goalie high on the short-side to make it 3-0. The B s needed the two points vs. a Vancouver team that is only 3-6-3 at home. It s the difference between a successful, and a really disappointing road trip, said Bruin David Krejci. We were supposed to get 5-of-6 (points). We re not in that position now. So if we can take 4-of-6, that s really good. The Canucks termed this game must-win. The B s didn t put quite that much importance in it. Must win? Krejci said. We obviously want to win. But what is important is that we have to play the right way. We didn t do that the last two games.