Thursday night, Game 6 between the Vancouver Canucks and the Vegas Golden Knights will take place in Edmonton. The Canucks stand with their backs against the wall for the second time in this second-round series. Will they be able to take this to 7 games, or will the Golden Knights qualify for the Western Conference Finals tonight?
Vancouver Canucks: Demko shined
Much of the success of the Vancouver Canucks this season is due to Jacob Markström. The 30-year-old goalie was one of the better goalkeepers in the NHL in the regular season and it was clear that the Swede was the first choice when the NHL Stanley Cup Play-offs started. Markström ended up playing fourteen consecutive games, including three sets of back-to-back games, but the large amount of ice time have taken its toll last weekend.
Markström didn't look too good in the fourth game (3-5 loss) and afterwards it was announced that he suffered a groin injury and that he was deemed “unfit to play” Game 5 next Tuesday. Head coach Travis Green had to rely on his backup goalie Thatcher in the possible elimination game and after sixty minutes of play it could be concluded that he delivered in a big way. The goalie would eventually become the hero of the night, as he saved 42 shots, leading the Canucks to a 2-1 win and keeping their Stanley Cup hopes alive.
Vegas Golden Knights: surprising loss
The Vegas Golden Knights is one of the most impressive teams in this year's playoffs. Vegas has a surprisingly stingy defense and they also finding the back of the net quite easily. Players like Mark Stone, Max Pacioretty, William Karlsson, Shea Theodore, Reilly Smith and Jonathan Marchessault can be expected to stand up in this important phase of the season, but the fact that Alex Tuch is leading the Golding Knights with seven goals shows how deep the team is.
No opponent has been able to stop the Golden Knights from scoring in the playoffs. Vegas scores an average of 3.53 goals per game and they conceide 2.15 goals per game. Robin Lehner has been a great addition and he took over the role of Nr. 1 goalie from Marc-André Fleury. The Swedish goalie already got two shutouts in this second-round NHL Playoffs series. Last Tuesday, the Golden Knights had the chance to secure themselves of a spot in the Western Conference Finals, but they suffered a 1-2 loss thanks to a strong performance by Markström.
Vegas Golden Knights -1
Vegas will have briefly discussed Tuesday's defeat and then shifted its sights to Thursday night's game. Demko stood on his head, saving 42 shots, while his teammates only mustered 17 shots on goal. Not only did he stole the game for Vancouver, he also saved the Canucks from being eliminated in the playoffs. I don't see Demko performing like that again and expect the Golden Knights to qualify for the Western Conference Finals tonight. Vegas is playing extremely dominant hockey, with a stingy defense and once they score, Vancouver's morale will slowly but surely disappear.
