Canucks look to rebound from rare loss

There seemed to be widespread panic yesterday in Vancouver after the Canucks lost to Anaheim. The Canucks lost a game! They had won four of their previous five and have won two-thirds of their games this season. They’re doing just fine. In terms of facing the Kings this season, there have been two very different games, both at Staples Center. On Nov. 10, the Canucks won 3-2 after they took a 3-0 first-period lead. On Dec. 31, the Kings beat the Canucks 4-1. Kings assistant coach John Stevens said he doesn’t expect much of a carry-over from either game.

STEVENS: “It seems like maybe years ago, in the regular season, each game didn’t have its own atmosphere and attitude. But I think now, in the 82-game season, with how tight it is every night, it seems like if anything, that’s going to motivate Vancouver, because we beat them last time and they’re coming off a loss (Sunday) night. We know we’re going to have to be ready. We know we’re going to get their best game and we just have to focus on ourselves here. We’re going to have to play better than we did (Sunday) night.”

Another difference between the two games is that Darryl Sutter was behind the bench for the second game, but not the first. Vancouver coach Alain Vigneault was asked if he saw any difference in the Kings under Sutter.

VIGNEAULT: “I always felt, playing against the Kings, that they were well-structured and really dependable defensively, and I see those same characteristics right now. I think their new coach has them trying to go on the attack a little bit more at the right time. As a group, they’re playing real solid hockey at both ends of the rink.”

Rules for Blog Commenting

  • No profanity, slurs or other offensive language. Replacing letters with symbols does not turn expletives into non-expletives.
  • Personal attacks against other blog commenters, and/or blatant attempts to antagonize other comments, are not tolerated. Respectful disagreement is encouraged. Posts that continually express the same singular opinion will be deleted.
  • Comments that incite political, religious or similar debates will be deleted.
  • Please do not discuss, or post links to websites that illegally stream NHL games.
  • Posting under multiple user names is not allowed. Do not type in all caps. All violations are subject to comment deletion and/or banning of commenters, per the discretion of the blog administrator.

Repeated violations of the blog rules will result in site bans, commensurate with the nature and number of offenses.

Please flag any comments that violate the site rules for moderation. For immediate problems regarding problematic posts, please email zdooley@lakings.com.