The Vancouver Canucks wrapped up their five-game road trip on Thursday with a 2-1 loss to the Nashville Predators. Max Sasson scored the only goal while Thatcher Demko stopped 33 of the 35 shots he faced. With the loss, the Canucks finish the road trip 3-2-0, but have now dropped their last two games. 

Vancouver's power play continues to be an issue as they went zero-for-five on the man advantage. In fact, the Canucks had a negative goal differential with the man advantage as Ryan O'Reilly scored shorthanded. Vancouver was even awarded a five-on-three for 1:30, yet only registered one shot during that opportunity. 

The power play has been a significant issue all season. Eight games in, the Canucks are four for 28 with the man advantage while giving up two shorthanded goals. From too many passes to pucks constantly missing the net, something on the power play needs to change, and quickly. 

"There going to press us all night," said Adam Foote post-game when asked about the five-on-three power play. "The last three games, teams have been pressing us a lot on our power play. We gotta move our feet. I think we've got to move our feet a little bit more. That's why they pressured us. Get a few more pucks to the net. We had some good looks but it would be nice to get one there."

Vancouver also struggled to create scoring chances at even strength. They were outshot 30-15 at even strength, with Thatcher Demko being relied upon to come up with big saves at crucial times. Overall, this was a sloppy defensive game for the Canucks, who kept it close thanks to Demko's performance.   

As for a positive, Sasson scored his third goal in five games this season. The 25-year-old utilized his speed to get separation before beating Juuse Saros for the only time in the game. Based on the way Sasson has been playing since he was called up, it will be difficult to send him back to the AHL once players start returning from IR. 

"He brings a lot of speed," said Quinn Hughes post-game when asked about Sasson's recent play. "Happy for him. It's a nice move there to anticipate that and go five-hole."

In the end, Vancouver looked tired, which is understandable as this was their fifth game in eight nights. That being said, there are some areas like the power play that need to be fixed if the team is going to have success in the long run. Unfortunately, the Canucks will not have a ton of practice time as they play three games in four nights at home before once again hitting the road before October is over. 

Stats and Facts:

- Max Sasson has goals in five of his seven pro games (NHL and AHL) this season

- Canucks finish below 46% in the faceoff dot for the seventh time in eight games this year

- Brock Boeser led all players with five shots on net

- Kiefer Sherwood records the 990th hit of his NHL career

Scoring Summary

1st Period:

No Scoring

2nd Period:

9:05- NSH: Ryan O'Reilly (3) from Spencer Stastney (SHG)
11:49- VAN: Max Sasson (3) from Linus Karlsson

3rd Period:

5:09- NSH: Cole Smith (2) from Justin Barron

Up Next: 

The Canucks return home for a weekend back-to-back starting on Saturday versus the Montréal Canadiens. Last season, Vancouver went 0-1-1 against Montréal, including a 4-2 loss at home. Puck drop is scheduled for 4:00 pm PT from Rogers Arena and can be viewed on Sportsnet. 

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