Hockey is finally back after a long low season, and the Vancouver Canucks are only hours to play their first game against a team other than himself. After three days of exercises, lines and a lot of teaching of their new coaching staff, they are ready to the Preseason against the Kraken in Seattle. But before we focus our attention on looking at what real hockey, we have to talk about what happened in the training camp.
Blue versus white scrimmage
The Canucks held them Annual blue versus white scrimmage On Sunday for a large crowd in Penticton. In a game, more than two term periods of 25 minutes played, team White came at the top with a 4-1 win. Kiefer Sherwood, Arshdeep Bains, Vilmer Alriksson and Brock Boeser took care of the team White attack, while Teddy Blueger scored the only goal for Team Blue.
Related: 5 Canucks positional fights to view during the preseason
The scrimmage was relatively low event, with the only real opportunities that come from the Sherwood, Braeden Cootes and Bains-line. They were in the attacking zone for many of their services and scored two goals. Nikita Tolopilo was the busiest of the four goalkeepers and gave the team white in the 1-0 lead when Team Blue flowed at the start of the second period. In the end, his team extended the lead to 3-0 before Blueger finally came on the board for Team Blue with a Quickly deke on a partial escapeThe roof over the shoulder of Tolopilo.
Boester closed the score after an impressive individual effort of the Noticeably faster Elias PetterssonHe came in on an unsuspecting Filip HRONEK, dissolved him from the puck and fed Boeer for a one-timer in the empty net. Although it was just a scrimmage, he looked a lot like Pavel Datsyuk, someone he was initially Compared to in his Rookie season.
Braeden Cootes turn heads
A player who has turned the head in the training camp is Cootes. He did not look like a prospect that participated in his first NHL training camp, which stands out about veterans such as Drew O’Connor, Aatu Raty and Vitali Kravtsov. The coaching staff has thrown a lot of praise for the past three days and emphasizes his smarts, balance and overall game, while he continues to center a line that is usually reserved for a more experienced player.
“He is a smart player. I saw that especially during hurry,” said head coach Adam Foote after day 1. “We did a lot of rushes where he was really good. He knows when he should stand, he knows when he should stay as a unity of three, he knows when he can be the weak side. Cootes?‘The province9/18/25).
Assistant -Coach Brett McLean had Similar things to say on day 2: “He really had a good day … Going on Pucks, and he is clearly smart and creative in some exercises. He is not only excited to be here – he is here to impress. And he did that.”
Cootes even made the social media height Reel on day 2, so that veteran defender Tyler Myer Myers looked crazy during a hood drill, covering his step-up attempt and left him in the dust in the neutral zone. Although it was only practicing, that is a fairly agile step to perform on a defender who recently played his 1000th game in the NHL.
All in all, it will be exciting to see what Cootes can do in the preseason, because he has definitely deserved the right to play a few games in the coming three weeks. If he performs well, we may see him fit the opening night against the Calgary Flames. But he doesn’t look that far ahead. In fact, he has been humble about his progression so farSaying: “I think I’m measuring reasonably well, but just bigger, faster, getting stronger, all the cliché dings … I am still 18, so I have time, which is fun.”
Based on all reports from the training camp, Cootes is ready for the NHL. But we will not know for sure until we see him in a real match against NHL defenders – which will come within a few hours, because he is able to adjust against the cracks.
One of the big storylines of the training camp is coaching staff and which systems they are trying to implement for this season. Foote initially said in His seasonal opening conference That he wants the entire team to have the identity of a chameleon, able to adapt to every opponent with which they are confronted. “We want to be able to adapt to our opponents,” Foote said. “I can’t sit here and say that we are becoming a Rush team or a dump-and-chase team. We are becoming a team that adapts to our opponents [and] Which makes them feel uncomfortable. “
We will clearly not see that Kameleon identity until the regular season, but after three days of practice and a scrimmage, some themes have emerged. The biggest is aggressive game of the defenders and the willingness to jump in the hurry when they can. During the scrimmage it was seen many times, in particular from Victor Mancini, Kirill Kudryavtsev and Pierre Olivier Joseph, who went deep into the offensive zone and ended with a scores.
‘I want them [the defencemen] To first and foremost defend the ice, and then close hard and quickly, ” said the new assistant coach Kevin DeanWho will run the defense this season. “Take the puck to the attackers as quickly as possible and be part of the violation.”
Related: Meet the assistant coaches of the new Canucks Kevin Dean, Scott Young & Brett McLean
Not all defenders of the Canucks are attacking, but As Marcus Pettersson said On day 2 they are all great puckmovers and can jump in the hurry. It does not always have to be the one-man transition machine, Quinn Hughes, who makes all plays.
“Just keep playing a simple game and keep an attacking mindset. I think we should try nothing. We have great puck -movers that move the puck quickly. Quinn is a dealbreaker there, and he can move the puck so well, or it is to shoot and shoot.
We will see part of that system in the preseason, and if the training camp is an indication, it should be fun to look at. The Canucks have the ability and speed to be an aggressive team in every zone, what exactly is what they won the Pacific Division in 2023-24. It is a good sign that Foote and his staff apparently are going back, because it was certainly successful that season.
Hockey for the season starts tonight
As mentioned, the Canucks will start their preseason schedule against the Kraken in Climate Pledge Arena tonight. The group on the way to Seattle was confirmed this morning and includes the last three first round picks of the Canucks, Cootes (2025), Tom Willander (2023) and Jonathan Lekkerimaki (2022). It will also include Bubble Players Baines, Pierre Olivier Joseph and Elias Pettersson. The big boys will stay at home to probably play in Abbotsford Center on Wednesday to give the home crowd a stars-littered line-up.
This line -up does not have many NHL veterans, but it should still be fun to look at. The Rookies get a baptism through burner experience, because the cracking will probably be ice for most of their NHL grid. We will see how Cootes and Willander deal with it. The promotion starts at 5 p.m. PT and is streamed on Canucks.com.
#Canucks #Training #Camp #Notebook #Scrimmage #Cootes #Footes #System #Hockey #Writers #Vancouver #Canucks #latest #news #analysis