Pre-Game Talk: Canucks vs. Flames, Saturday night: In which we scoreboard-watch for the rest of the work week

[Zombotron]

Battle at the top
Team	P	ROW	Occupying	Next game	Result	Game after that	Note
Calgary	99	46	#1 West	Mar. 21 vs. OTT	W	Mar. 23 @ VAN	Magic number to prevent VGK from taking the division: 7
Winnipeg	92	42	#2 West	Mar. 21 vs. PIT	L	Mar. 23 vs. NSH
San Jose	94	43	#1 Pacific	Mar. 21 @ LAK	L	Mar. 22 @ ANA

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Battle for WC2
Team	GP by end of Sat.	P	ROW	Next game	Result	Game after that
Arizona	74 (-1)	78	32	Mar. 21 @ FLA	L	Mar. 23 @ NJD
Colorado	75 (even)	78	32	Mar. 21 @ DAL	W	Mar. 23 vs. CHI
Minnesota	76 (+1)	78	32	Mar. 22 @ WSH		Mar. 23 @ CAR
Chicago	74 (-1)	74	30	Mar. 21 vs. PHI	L	Mar. 23 @ COL
Vancouver	75	74	28	---	---	Mar. 23 vs. CGY
Edmonton	75 (even)	73	30	Mar. 21 vs. CBJ	W	Mar. 23 vs. OTT

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Jim Benning's Cavalcade of Incompetence, by year and point total
Season	P	W	Reg. wins
2015-16	75	31	22
2018-19	74	32	21
2017-18	73	31	25
2016-17	69	30	19

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

	30 goal watch	60 point watch	Point streak
Elias	27	63	4 games / 5 points
Bo	27	57	2 games / 5 points
Brock	24	52	8 games / 9 points

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Click to read more...

 

[Canuckle1970]

Win or lose, I'm really looking forward to this one. Flames vs Canucks games are historically charged with emotion. That was missing from tonight's win over Ottawa.

Bring it on.

 

[Josepho]

i'm a big fan of the idea of 20% of our wins coming against calgary/tampa/toronto/boston

 

[DownGoesMcDavid]

Will Q Hughes make his NHL debut ?

Who would come out ?

 

[Zombotron]

 

[rypper]

Markstrom will get the nod because playoffs.

 

[Hemty]

Markstrom will get the nod because playoffs.

You probably mean "finish the season 2 points out of a playoff spot & stink for the next foreseeable future"

5-2 Flames.

 

[JuniorNelson]

Being on a losing team is a beat down. It hurts all Summer. I like how this squad isn't going away quietly. I like how they want to keep playing. This is what the new core is like, I hope!

I'd put a C on somebody right now, too. Crazy talk, I know but Captains are kind of useful around playoff time.


Canucks 4 Flames 0

 

[LiveeviL]

Even if it would be a first round exit I hope for playoffs just for bringing the experience of playoffs (not the early exit though, I saw that you were ready to make a pun out of it) for the players come future playoffs.

 

[Fire Benning]

What is there to scoreboard watch?

 

[Grub]

At least make it entertaining.

 

[Fire Benning]

Hughes will probably be ready to go for the 2nd round.

 

[ErrantShepherd]

What is there to scoreboard watch?

The squeak in that requires us to sweep our remaining games, and everyone else to suck.

If it actually happened, that would be hilarious.

 

[TruKnyte]

Even if it would be a first round exit I hope for playoffs just for bringing the experience of playoffs (not the early exit though, I saw that you were ready to make a pun out of it) for the players come future playoffs.

That's really helped the Oiler's progress...

 

[ErrantShepherd]

That's really helped the Oiler's progress...

Well I mean, the Oilers also had 10 years of not making the playoffs from 2005/6 to 2016/7 even after they went on a stretch from 2010-2015 where they accumulated three 1st overalls in a row, followed next year by #7 Nurse, #3 Draisatl, and then #1 McDavid.

I would love their draft picks for sure, but no way would I enjoy the team being stuck the same way the Oilers have been.

Have the Oilers chances at being relevant really been hurt that much by a brief playoff appearance? I'd say their general mismanagement over 10 years prior would be more the issue there.

If we make the playoffs, I'll enjoy being back in them. If we don't, I'll hope we move up. Will stressing out about it actually change anything?

For instance, I've been expecting this team when it was performing well either to just squeak into the playoffs or miss by a few points. Looks like that will be the case, but then we could just as easily just go on a losing streak at this point. Kinda feel like people are set in their stances on their preferences ages ago though.

 

[Tryforthekingdom]

Hughes will probably be ready to go for the 2nd round.

Of golf?

 

[Fire Benning]

i'm a big fan of the idea of 20% of our wins coming against calgary/tampa/toronto/boston

hilarious how tampa has 13 reg. losses and one was against us lol

 

[Fire Benning]

Feels like the #firebenning momentum has slowed down quite a bit with this recent ‘run’.

Only two non-playoff teams on the schedule, hopefully there’s some ass whoopings to end the season on this home stand.

 

[Cogburn]

Hell no, #fireBenning must live.

Playoffs or not (we all know it won't be this year), dude needs to go.

I like cheering for March wins again though. That 1% that we make it in is something to cheer for.

Unlike that Vegas game I went to...

 

[thekernel]

When John Tortorella was coach, I couldn't even bring myself watch games after the All-Star break. The hockey was so bad....no scoring, no winning, nothing exciting going on. It's nice to have something worth watching, at this time of year no less -- even if it is kinda contingent on Florida, Philly, Dallas, and Washington all winning before Saturday

 

[EXTRAS]

Baertschi activated from IR.

Over/Under his career is over in the next 10 games???

 

[vanarchy]

Play the cards that are dealt to us. “Trying” to get a lottery pick will enstill a Buffalo/Edmonton style culture from which you can never escape even after you win.

 

[Fire Benning]

Play the cards that are dealt to us. “Trying” to get a lottery pick will enstill a Buffalo/Edmonton style culture from which you can never escape even after you win.

I don't see how the Canucks are significantly different than either of those teams tbh

 

[VanJack]

Despite all the pumping of tires on the playoff race, the Canucks recent spurt of 4 wins in five starts has almost doubled their playoff odds--to about 1.2%. That, according to the sports betting services.

For comparisons sake, their chances of winning the draft lottery are six times higher than making the playoffs. My only hope is that Gary Bettman's phony playoff race doesn't somehow translate into fewer starts for Demko or the delayed arrival in the lineup of Hughes.

 

[vanarchy]

I don't see how the Canucks are significantly different than either of those teams tbh

From an organizational standpoint, you are absolutely correct.

From a player standpoint, though, Horvat has more heart than the entire Oilers roster combined. That's our silver lining to me. I love how much Elias hates to lose.