Canucks Comeback Falls Short In 5-4 Loss To The Devils

The Vancouver Canucks pushed to the final whistle but were unable to complete their comeback, falling 5-4 to the New Jersey Devils. Vancouver received goals from Linus Karlsson, Teddy Blueger, Zeev Buium and Brock Boeser. As for Kevin Lankinen, he stopped 19 of the 24 shots he faced in the loss. 

Friday's game was a duplication of many other nights this season. The Canucks found themselves in a multi-goal deficit but found a way to stage a third-period comeback that just fell short. While the overall effort was good, Friday was yet another reminder that Vancouver still needs to add some gamebreakers to their lineup if they want to have long-term success. 

The big story heading into this game was the return of Filip Cytil. The 26-year-old has been out of the lineup since October 19 and logged 18:29 in his return. Post-game, Chytil spoke to the media about his first game in three months.

"Yeah, wasn't too bad," said Chytil. "I have to look around more now. And of course, the last moment from the last game I played was a big hit. So first couple of shifts was more like, get my head back to the game and look around more. And yeah, I think when the game went on, I felt better even with the puck. But there's still so much room to work on. Because even if you practice for two months, that's not a game. So I just need to get the games now and feel better."

As for the game itself, the penalty kill was once again a major storyline. While the Canucks did score shorthanded, they also allowed multiple goals while on the penalty kill. Post-game, Blueger spoke about the penalty kill and what needs to change moving forward. 

" I think we got to get on the same page," said Blueger. "I think we need better reads off each other, and then I think we just need to execute and just be sharp mentally, probably more than anything, on those details. You know whether you're tired at the end of a shift or whatever is going on, you got to kind of be in sync and know what responsibility is. And then if four guys do that together, I think it makes it hard to beat."

In the end, some positives can be taken from Friday's loss. The Canucks kept pushing until the end and received some standout performances from younger players like Buium, Karlsson and Tom Elias Pettersson. Ultimately, the game featured some entertaining moments, which kept fans cheering from their seats until the final buzzer. 

- Teddy Blueger becomes Latvia's all-time leader in shorthanded goals with eight

- Zeev Buium scores his first goal at Rogers Arena

- Defenceman Elias Pettersson led Vancouver with five hits

- Filip Hronek led all players with 27:27 of ice time

1st Period:

1:41- NJD: Lenni Hameenaho (First Career Goal) from Simon Nemec and Cody Glass

2nd Period:

2:34- NJD: Nico Hischier (16) from Jack Hughes and Dougie Hamilton (PPG)
3:13- NJD: Cody Glass (12) from Lenni Hameenaho and Jonas Siegenthaler
9:47- VAN: Linus Karlsson (11) from Nils Höglander and Marcus Pettersson
11:59- VAN: Teddy Blueger (2) from Drew O'Connor (SHG)
15:12- NJD: Connor Brown (10) from Arseny Gritsyuk and Nico Hischier (PPG)
18:12- VAN: Zeev Buium (5) from Elias Pettersson

3rd Period: 

11:02- VAN: Cody Glass (13) from Timo Meier and Johnathan Kovacevic

Up Next:

The Canucks are back in action on Sunday when they welcome the Pittsburgh Penguins to Rogers Arena. Pittsburgh picked up a victory the last time these two teams played by a score of 5-1. Game time is scheduled for 3:00 pm PT. 

Make sure you bookmark THN's Vancouver Canucks site and add us to your favourites on Google News for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more. Also, don't forget to leave a comment at the bottom of the page and engage with other passionate fans through our forum. This article originally appeared on The Hockey News.

Latest From THN’s Vancouver Canucks Site: 

NHL Insiders Links Two Central Division Teams To Canucks Winger Evander Kane

How The Vancouver Canucks Stack Up To The Rest Of The NHL: 50 Games In

Canucks Elias Pettersson Could See Expanded Role For Team Sweden At The 2026 Winter Olympics

For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or creating your own post in our community forum.