Vancouver Canucks, Straight Up: Sven Baertschi aces his audition in (another) win over the Oilers

    1 of 1 2 of 1

      The games don’t count, and the Edmonton Oilers didn’t have anywhere close to an NHL-ready lineup in either of the games. But come on, it’s still nice to see the Vancouver Canucks post back-to-back wins against one of their Alberta rivals.

      It was also clear that this game meant something to almost every Canuck playing tonight.

      Among those was of course Sven Baertschi. A bit of an unknown heading into this season, Canucks coach Travis Green admitted that tonight’s contest was something of an audition for the forward. 

      So, like a nervous high schooler trying to get into the senior drama program (not like we’re drawing on personal experience or anything), Baertschi can probably breathe a sigh of relief.

      Rumoured to be on the outside of the top-six, he hooked up with his old linemate Bo Horvat for a beautiful connection.

      Was it enough to stave off guys like Tanner Pearson and J.T. Miller for a spot on Horvat’s wing? That remains to be seen, but it couldn’t have hurt.

      Here’s what else we saw in the Canucks’ 6-1 preseason thrashing of the Edmonton Oilers.

      Three that impressed

      1. Bo Horvat

      The Canucks’ would-be captain showed off, using his speed and skill to demonstrate that he was clearly a class above most of the other players in the game.

      The pass to Baertschi was beautiful, and he had a nice breakaway finish as well. It’s just a matter of when the team gives him the ‘C’. Opening night?

      2. Brogan Rafferty

      We’ve been on the Rafferty train for a while now, and he did nothing to dissuade us last night. The defenceman opened up the scoring with a snipe from the point and looked strong all night. He and Oscar Fantenberg seemed to form an effective pair.

      3. Adam Gaudette

      Much has been made of this preseason being especially important for the sophomore. After all, even though he played 56 games for the Canucks last season, he’s still going to be in tough to crack the forward-heavy lineup this year. He also can’t be claimed off waivers, which makes him a prime candidate to be sent down to the Utica Comets.

      But he had a nice night against the Oilers, punctuating a solid overall effort with the last goal of the evening.

      Three that didn’t

      1. Mikko Koskinen

      Yikes. The book on Koskinen last season was that he had trouble with his glove side. Guess where the first two Canucks goals were?

      The Oilers ‘tender conceded five tallies before being relieved at the second intermission. Among those was a Lukas Jasek powerplay marker that NHL goalies simply don’t let in. 

      2. Jordie Benn 

      Hard to pick on the Canucks after an effort like that, but Benn had a couple giveaways in his own end (including one to Anthony Peluso, who has hands of stone) and just didn’t look completely comfortable back there.

      3. Matt Benning

      The Canucks general manager’s nephew didn’t have a great night. There was a delay of game penalty and a couple times where he lost his man or couldn’t track down a pass. Not great for someone the Oilers are going to be relying a lot on this season.

      Notable

      - Canucks announcer John Shorthouse was in fine form, giving a shoutout to the Kerrisdale jamboree and mistaking former Canuck Markus Granlund for none other than Markus Naslund. We love you, Shorty.

      - J.T. Miller’s full name is Jonathan Tanner Miller and we really think he’s making the right call by simply going with J.T.

      - Another Oilers defenceman who had a rough night? Keegan Lowe. Why it’s almost like the Oilers shouldn’t be giving roster spots based on someone’s last name. Hm.

      - Tim Schaller and Loui Eriksson were both effective, and it might be hard for coach Travis Green to justify sending the pair down to Utica, as many have called for.

      - Among the few bright spots for Edmonton was 2018 draft pick Ryan McLeod. The centre looked fast and comfortable with the pace of the NHL game.   

      Quotable

      “First game. There were some goals I’m sure he’d want back, but first game, let’s move on.” – Oilers coach Dave Tippett on Koskinen

      “I got stronger and faster, I can be an impact player.” – Gaudette on his game

      “This is what we grind all summer for. The guys made it easy for me, we played a pretty good road game.” – Jacob Markstrom on what was a great first showing for him

      Follow @ncaddell on Twitter

      Comments