Canucks @ Islanders Pre Game

Canucks @ Islanders, SNET-VAN, TEAM 1040, 4:00PM PST

It's game day in Canucks land again and after the 5 games in 7 night stint the two days off seems like forever that the team has been on the ice.  But don't worry if you missed hockey over the last two days. The team is right back into a 5 games in 8 night stretch.

Tonight is team #1 Vs team #29 in league standings. In the last 21 games for the Canucks they are 17-1-3 with 37 points. In 40 games this season the Islanders have only 32 points going 13-21-6. Seems like it should be an easy win for the Canucks, however I don't think it will be. If you were a team in basically last place in the NHL and one of your more offensively gifted players is fired up to play his old team (Grabner), I would guess tonight the Islanders will play like this is a playoff game for them. If you follow Grabner on twitter he posted this early today "Skate is done... good to see the guys again but there are no friends on the ice... it's gona be a good test for us.see ya at the game." The Islanders have beat a few Western conference teams recently and it would be dumb for the Canucks to under estimate them.


Keys for tonight for the Canuck's are pretty simple, play their game and they will win. If the team plays at the level they are capable of tonight without coming down to the level of the Islanders they simply have to much skill and depth to not win. I don't see any match up issues with the top lines tonight, Canuck's should easily be able to roll our their top three lines without being worried who is on the ice for the Islanders and they will be able to get their fourth line some shifts tonight's as well. Look for the depth of the Canuck's to simply overwhelm the Islanders. 


Kesler is playing slightly injured tonight, he has a thumb injury that he is saying might be an issue in the faceoff circle but shouldn't be an issue in any other aspect of the game. Tambellini will be on Kesler's line and has some faceoff ability. Keep your eye out for Tambi in the dot. As much as it will be fun to see Grabner playing against his old team, Tambellini gets the same chance tonight going against the Islanders. It looks as though the Islanders passed on a very skilled forward in Tambellini who has found a nice home beside Kesler on the Canucks second line. He will be fired up to have a good game tonight. The line should still be able to use their speed to get in and pressure the Islanders defense to cough the puck up and get a few chances.

Because Kesler has a bit of an injury I expect the Twins to maybe see a little bit more ice time early in the game. They are coming off a game in Detroit where they missed on a few chances and I'm sure they'd like to get the team back on track. The Islanders have no real imposing defensive force anywhere in their lineup and they rarely see a duo like the Twins out East. I expect the Twins to have a solid game and put up some points.

The third line will have to deal with a quick line tonight in Grabner, Schremp and Sim. But they have the ability to pin them in the offensive zone and take advantage of their lack of defensive play. I expect the Malholtra line to have a good game tonight.

Luongo is back in goal tonight and he is slowly, under the radar, returning to his elite status. He's moving into the top 10 in most goalie stats, including being 4th in Wins with a lot less games played then the guys ahead of him. His stats have been climbing for a while and this mid-season rest he's been getting from Schneider will be great come playoff time.

Canucks should be able to use the same game style they use against the Oilers team to pick apart the Islanders. But be careful, if they fall into the trap of being the best team against a weaker team they will have problems.

Go Canucks Go

Twitter me @bmah03

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