The view from Vancouver

VANCOUVER PROVINCE

Ben Kuzma: Canucks 3 Kings 0: Buy-in evident in convincing win
“With rookie Jake Virtanen making his NHL regular-season debut against the lethargic Los Angeles Kings and Jared McCann parked for the night, lines got the test-tube treatment with mixed results in a tidy 3-0 victory and a sweep of a two-game California trip to improve to 3-0-1.”

Jason Botchford: The Provies: Benching or not, Virtanen did not disappoint
“The most fascinating development during the first two weeks of the season isn’t that the Canucks are still without a regulation loss.

It’s that they’re without a regulation loss and have played just one really good game, and that was the first one.

They wiped out the Kings tonight and you were left thinking, the Canucks can be better than this. They sure as hell should have a better power play.”

Ben Kuzma: Canucks Post Game: Cracknell cracks smile, Virtanen doesn’t pull a Dorsett in debut, Miller shuts door
“Adam Cracknell eagerly stood up to do a post-game interview because he hasn’t done many. But with goals in successive games, the fourth-line centre now has two in four games and is one away from a career high of three in 24 games with the St. Louis Blues in the 2010-11 season. So, when the Cranbrook resident took a cross-ice feed from Brandon Prust and got the puck past Jonathan Quick in the second period to provide a two-goal cushion, he knew the microphones would come calling again. After all, the free agent got the call two weeks before training camp. This story isn’t going away.”

Ben Kuzma: Horvat wins faceoff against adversity
“When Horvat played just his fourth NHL regular-season game here on Nov. 9, 2014, he was thrown into the deep end of the development pool by coach Willie Desjardins. No wading in against the defending Stanley Cup-champion Kings.

The raw rookie had to sink or swim.

He took draws against Anze Kopitar, Jeff Carter and Jarret Stoll and while the Canucks would lose 5-1 that night, Horvat won the admiration of his coach for winning 55 per cent of his faceoffs and logging 14:53 of ice time. He played just 8:52 in his first game last season and 7:18 in his second.”

VANCOUVER SUN

Iain MacIntyre: Canucks shut out Kings to continue hot start to season
“And on the seventh day, the Vancouver Canucks won again.

All you need to know about the first seven days of the Canucks’ National Hockey League season is this: Tuesday’s 3-0 win against the Los Angeles Kings moved them seven points clear of the two-time Stanley Cup winners.”

Iain MacIntyre: Tough guy Milan Lucic is loving life in L.A., except for the commute
“Lucic is happy to be back on the West Coast but conceded Tuesday he was pretty excited in June when initial rumours had him headed home to Vancouver.

“I was always open to that possibility and always thought it would be a pretty cool thing if it did happen,” Lucic, 27, said before facing the Canucks here. “L.A. has been great so far and I’m enjoying every bit of it. I don’t know what’s going to happen in the future. I’m still on the West Coast and that feels like home. I’ve had that feeling since I got here and it has made the transition a lot easier on me.”

PASS IT TO BULIS

Harrison Mooney: I Watched This Game: Canucks 3, Kings 0
“It’s hard to know how excited one should be about Tuesday night’s 3-0 win over the Los Angeles Kings. I’d say it hinges on one central question: are the Canucks good, or are the Kings bad? And it might not be an either/or scenario — it could be both. But let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves.”

CANUCKS ARMY

Matthew Henderson: Canucks Army Postgame: Road Trippin’ Out
“If you asked a rational Canucks fan prior to the season, what would they have said would be a reasonable return in the standings? four points, maybe five? Nobody would have said seven. But alas, the most unpredictable team in sports surprised us again and took 3/4 and seven of a possible eight points from their rivals from Calgary, Anaheim and Los Angeles.”

Matthew Henderson: Game at a Glance: Canucks 3 – Kings 0

NUCKS MISCONDUCT

Sean Larson: Canucks cap off first road trip with 3-0 shutout win over Kings
“Last season, the Canucks struggled to figure out how to beat Jonathan Quick. That wasn’t the case on Tuesday night as the Canucks defeated the Kings 3-0 at the Staples Center.

Adam Cracknell and Alex Edler scored for the Canucks (Derek Dorsett added a late empty netter) while Ryan Miller delivered the 35th shutout of his career as Vancouver improved to 3-0-1 to start the year, all against division opponents. Miller made 28 saves on the night.”