Canucks Get Goalied By Igor Shesterkin, Fall 5-3 To The Rangers

Despite outshooting their opponent 39-12, the Vancouver Canucks fell 5-3 to the New York Rangers on Saturday morning. Dakota Joshua, Drew O'Connor and Brock Boeser scored the goals, while Kevin Lankinen stopped eight of the 11 shots he faced. With the loss, the Canucks will remain below the playoff bar and now have 76 points through 70 games. 

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Goaltending was the biggest factor in why Vancouver fell to New York. Igor Shesterkin was incredible, while Lankinen struggled as he finished with a save percentage of .636. The play of Shesterkin and Lankinen can ultimately be summed up by MoneyPuck.com's "Derseve To Win O'Meter," which had the Canucks winning 92.7% of the time after 1000 game simulations.  

"That guy's a world-class goalie," said Tocchet post-game. "I thought we had some good chances. We had the puck a lot. It's one of those games where we just didn't have enough. Obviusly, we got the tier, Boes (Boeser) with a great goal, but that's a killer rush. That's an avoidable goal. Like I said, they didn't have many shots tonight."

As for standouts, Quinn Hughes was once again a star for Vancouver. He recorded an assist, had nine shots on goal and logged 28:25 of ice time. While many had impressive efforts, Hughes was far and away the Canucks best player and was also arguably the best skater on the ice Saturday.

DeBrusk also had a monster game in the offensive zone for Vancouver. During his 18 minutes of ice time, DeBrusk had eight shots on goal and recorded the primary assist on Boeser's third-period marker. DeBrusk was a pain to deal with all game, as he was the Canucks most dangerous forward against the Rangers. 

Vancouver also suffered some significant injuries during this game. Center Elias Pettersson and Nils Höglander did not play in the third period, as they were ruled out with undisclosed injuries. Tocchet did not have a full update on either player after the game but did say it is possible that both won't play on Monday. 

In the end, this was a very frustrating game, as the Canucks deserved a better fate. They were able to create chances and get pucks on net, which has been an issue all season. Ultimately, if Vancouver can put forth more efforts as they did on Saturday, they should be able to secure some victories during this current six-game road trip. 

Stats and Facts:

- Quinn Hughes becomes the seventh-fastest defenseman to 400 points in NHL history
- Kiefer Sherwood sets a new NHL record for most hits in a season
- Quinn Hughes ties his career high with nine shots in a game
- Canucks set a new season high in shots with 39

Scoring Summary:

1st Period:

11:51- VAN: Dakota Joshua (5) from Quinn Hughes and Nils Åman

2nd Period:

11:03- NYR: Adam Fox (6) from Braden Schneider and Alexis Lafrenière

3rd Period:

1:39- NYR: Jonny Brodzinski (8) from J.T. Miller and Alexis Lafrenière
11:22- VAN: Drew O'Connor (10) from Nils Åman and Victor Mancini
12:40- NYR: K'Andre Miller (6) from Vincent Trocheck and Adam Fox
15:10- VAN: Brock Boeser (23) from Jake DeBrusk
15:47- NYR: Jonny Brodzinski (9) from Alexis Lafrenière and Carson Soucy
19:44- NYR: J.T. Miller (17) (ENG)

Up Next:

The Canucks continue their road trip on Monday when they visit the New Jersey Devils. These two teams met back in October when New Jersey defeated Vancouver 6-0 at Rogers Arena. Puck drop is scheduled for 4:30 pm PT from the Prudential Center