Canucks Gameday Preview #26: A Matinee Against The High-Scoring Lightning

The Vancouver Canucks (14-7-4) continue their six-game homestand on Sunday with a matchup against the Tampa Bay Lightning (13-9-2). This will be the second time this season Vancouver and Tampa Bay have met, with the Lightning defeating the Canucks 4-1 back in October. As for Vancouver, they come into this game on a hot streak, having won five times and collecting 11 of a possible 14 points in their last seven games.

Latest From THN's Vancouver Canucks Site:

25 Games In, How Do The 2024-25 Canucks Compare To Last Season's Version?

BREAKING: Canucks’ Boeser Tallies 400th Career Point

Canucks DeBrusk Ready To Bring Recent Road Goal Scoring Success To Rogers Arena

Heading into Sunday, the biggest storylines revolve around injured players and whether or not they will play. For the Canucks, Thatcher Demko could be getting his first start of the season, while Nikita Kucherov might be ready to return to the lineup after missing the last two games with a lower-body injury. Both play crucial roles for their teams and would be a massive boost heading into Sunday's game.

Players to Watch:

Nils Höglander:

Nils Höglander has had a tough start to the season. He is averaging a career-low 11:53 of ice time and hasn't found the scoresheet in 15 games. That being said, if he can have a big game against a strong Lightning team, it should help his case for more minutes on a nightly basis.

Brandon Hagel:

Brandon Hagel is having a dream start to the 2024-25 season. He has 31 points in 24 games and was recently named to Team Canada for the 4 Nations Face-Off. Coming off a two-goal game against the San Jose Sharks, Vancouver will need to keep a close eye on him when he has the puck in the offensive zone.

Vancouver Canucks Projected Lineup:

DeBrusk-Pettersson-Boeser
Joshua-Suter-Garland
Höglander-Blueger-Boeser
Räty-Sasson-Heinen

Hughes-Juulsen
Brännström-Desharnais
Soucy-Myers

Lankinen
Šilovs

Top 5 Scoring Leaders (Goals, Assists, Points):

Vancouver Canucks (14-7-4):

Quinn Hughes: 6-25-3
Elias Pettersson: 7-17-24
Conor Garland: 8-15-23
Jake DeBrusk: 12-9-21
Pius Suter: 11-5-16

Tampa Bay Lightning (13-9-2)

Nikita Kucherov: 12-22-34
Brandon Hagel: 12-19-31
Brayden Point: 16-9-25
Anthony Cirelli: 11-13-24
Jake Guentzel: 11-13-24

Game Information:

Start Time: 1:00 pm PT
Venue: Rogers Arena
Television: Sportsnet
Radio: Sportsnet 650