Canucks raise expectations after 2-2 start to demanding first week

The Vancouver Canucks wrapped up a gruelling opening week Sunday with a 3-2 home loss to the Vegas Golden Knights, leaving them at 2-2 after four games in six nights. For a team that finished dead last in the NHL a season ago, that record could easily be spun as progress, but the post-game tone in the dressing room suggested something else: expectations have climbed.

Less than 24 hours after a 4-1 win over the Calgary Flames, Vancouver again faced a projected Stanley Cup contender and spent long stretches under pressure. Vegas outshot the Canucks 26-11 over the first two periods, helped by a string of Vancouver penalties that fuelled the Golden Knights’ power play and tilted the ice toward Kevin Lankinen’s crease.

Despite the lopsided shot totals, the Canucks led 1-0 after the first intermission. Newcomer Paul Cotter, formerly a depth forward with the New Jersey Devils, opened the scoring late in the period on the power play by getting his stick on a Filip Hronek point shot. It was Cotter’s fourth goal in as many games with Vancouver.

Costly penalties and one shift that swung the game

Discipline continued to be a problem in the second. Penalties to Jamie Oleksiak, Aatu Raty, Brendan Gallagher and Tom Willander allowed Vegas to generate momentum and keep Vancouver pinned in its own end. Even so, the Canucks clawed back to 2-2 when rookie Jonathan Lekkerimaki fired from a sharp angle late in the frame, squeezing the puck between Adin Hill’s arm and torso.

That tying goal lasted only one shift. On the next change, defensive-zone turnovers by Liam Ohgren and passive coverage from Elias Pettersson and others opened the door for fourth-liner Marc Gatcomb to bury what stood up as the winner. Head coach Manny Malhotra pointed to that sequence as the kind of pivotal moment his young team has to manage better if it wants to consistently beat elite opponents.

Malhotra, in his first year behind an NHL bench, said he has seen progress in areas like the team’s starts but warned that giving a dangerous power play repeated early looks lets opponents control the run of play. Still, emerging from the first period up 1-0 despite being heavily outshot was, in his view, a sign that the group can stick to structure under duress.

Lankinen steady, standards higher as road trip looms

Lankinen, back in goal after a night off following a high-scoring home-and-home set with the Edmonton Oilers, was one of Vancouver’s best players. The typically low-key netminder turned aside 25 shots and kept his team within reach, later saying he feels the Canucks are “building a new system, building a new culture” and that he has a very good feeling about where the group is headed.

Internally, though, a .500 start is not seen as a benchmark to celebrate. Centre Max Sasson spoke about belief in the room and the sense that this Canucks team should not be an easy opponent for anyone. Veteran winger Drew O’Connor echoed that sentiment, stressing that better starts are needed to give themselves a stronger chance each night.

The weekend also forced lineup adjustments. Winger Jake DeBrusk missed both games due to illness, opening a spot for Raty on the fourth line and pushing Cotter into a larger role on the second unit, while Marco Rossi joined Pettersson on the top line. Pettersson extended his point streak to four games with an assist on Cotter’s goal, and Cotter finished a dominant night in the faceoff circle, while Hronek now has five points in four games compared to zero so far for defence partner Zeev Buium.

The schedule only intensifies from here. After splitting two games with the Oilers, the rebuilding Canucks now head east for a six-game road trip that begins Thursday against the defending champion Carolina Hurricanes and ends with stops against the Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning. Over that stretch, Vancouver’s upgraded standards will be tested against some of the league’s toughest competition.