Stick-taps and glove-drops is a recurring feature after every Canucks game giving some quick kudos and criticism before the longer I Watched This Game feature. Feel free to leave your own stick-taps and glove-drops in the comments.
I have to drop the gloves with Jacob Markstrom, who was chased from this game early after three quick goals against on five shots. You could argue there was little he could do on the second and third goals, both redirections, but the wraparound goal by Kevin Hayes had no business going in.
Stick-tap to Anders Nilsson, who made some stunning stops in relief of Markstrom. He eventually gave up the same number of goals, but the three goals scored on him are pretty forgivable: a breakaway, a ridiculous move in alone, and a perfect one-timer off a pass across the “royal road.”
A grudging stick-tap to Henrik Lundqvist, who was unreal in net for the Rangers. Sure, he gave up five goals, but the Canucks peppered the net with 55 shots as the Rangers’ defence parted like the Red Sea in front of him.
Brendan Leipsic gets a tap of the stick in his Canucks debut. He fit right in on the top line with Bo Horvat and Brock Boeser, using his speed and skill to keep the pressure on in the offensive zone. That trio out-shot the Rangers 12-4 when they were on the ice together at 5-on-5 and Leipsic had a game-high seven shots on goal. He didn’t score, but did pick up two assists.
Tap of the stick to Bo Horvat for his superb pass on the Canucks’ first goal. After a dominant shift by his line, he fired a pass through the slot to Boeser at the back door and he made no mistake, roofing the puck over a sprawling Lundqvist.
It was a bit of an up-and-down game, but I’ll give a stick-tap to Ben Hutton anyway, because I liked the confidence with which he jumped up in the play. He created several scoring chances for himself and others and finished with six shots on goal. He had some shaky moments defensively, but the Canucks need that offensive spark from their backend.
Tap of the stick to Henrik Sedin, who continues to prove that he’s still got it. He and his brother gave up a couple breakaways in this game by trying a little too much near the Rangers’ blue line, but they also came through offensively. On the Canucks’ second goal, Henrik’s setup to Daniel in front was impeccable. Lundqvist stopped the redirection, but Horvat was there to clean up the rebound.
Daniel Sedin gets a stick-tap too. He added to his recent hot streak with a two-point game, bringing him to seven goals and 12 points in his last nine games. He tied up the game 3-3 by drilling an atypical-for-him slap shot after Henrik’s pass to Michael Del Zotto was tipped into his wheelhouse.
A glove-drop to Daniel and Henrik on the Rangers’ fourth goal, however, as one of the breakaways they gave up cost them. The twins simply passed a little too much in a dangerous areaof the ice and Vladislav Namestnikov stole the puck and beat Nilsson five-hole on the breakaway.
Stick-tap to Tyler Motte, who wasn’t quite as noticeable as Leipsic in his first game as a Canuck, but had his own moment in the sun with Leipsic in the penalty box. Motte hounded the Rangers on the forecheck while killing the penalty, single-handedly pinning the Rangers in their own zone for a good chunk of their power play. The effort earned Motte a nice ovation from the Rogers Arena crowd.
Tap of the stick to Leipsic and Nikolay Goldobin, who combined for a fantastic goal. They were on the second power play unit together and, as the Canucks’ power play expired, Leipsic faked a slap shot and instead thread the needle to Goldobin on the other side of the ice. The pass was in Goldobin’s skates, but he took it neatly with his stick in tight and put it right in a shooting position for himself, finishing past Lundqvist’s two-pad stack.
Have to drop the gloves with Goldobin as well, unfortunately, as his giveaway in the neutral zone led directly to the fifth Rangers goal. He was too casual with a backhand pass, then couldn’t get back on Mika Zibanejad to prevent him from dragging the puck around a sprawling Nilsson and putting it in the net.
Stick-tap to Brock Boeser, who tied the game with Nilsson pulled for the extra attacker. He took a great backhand feed from Leipsic, pulled the puck to his forehand, and ripped the puck past Lundqvist’s blocker. The two-goal night brings Boeser up to 29 goals on the season.
I’m dropping the gloves with Brandon Sutter on the overtime game winner. Defending at 3-on-3 is a tough task, but he should have been a lot tighter on John Gilmour, who put the one-timer off the post and in, and trusted his linemate, Leipsic, to pick up the trailer. Instead, Sutter placed himself in a position to check both players and, by doing so, checked neither.
