Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet makes significant lineup change - Arshdeep Bains handed promotion
Vancouver Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet has made a big change to the team's lineup at practice today that involves rookie forward Arshdeep Bains.
Less than 24 hours after their four-game winning streak came to an end, the Vancouver Canucks were back on the ice at Rogers Arena for practice and after Rick Tocchet spoke with the media following the loss, we knew some changes were on the horizon.
Rick Tocchet wasn't too pleased with Nils Hoglander last night, who was with Elias Pettersson and Conor Garland, and it appears that the Swedish forward has been handed a pretty significant demotion in the lineup.
Big promotion for rookie forward Arshdeep Bains
Brendan Batchelor of Sportsnet 650 radio was at the Canucks' practice on Tuesday afternoon where he shared the lines Rick Tocchet deployed. After starting last night's game on the fourth line with Pius Suter and Daniel Sprong, rookie forward Arshdeep Bains was on the top line at practice today alongside Conor Garland and Elias Pettersson.
Bains has looked solid in the last two games for the Canucks, scoring his first career goal on Saturday night against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Last night against Carolina, Bains thought he scored again, but the play was reviewed and it was called offside.
After a strong first period, Rick Tocchet gave Bains more opportunities in the final 40 minutes, ultimately finishing the game with 11:09 of ice time, his third-highest of the season.
Changes coming on the blue line?
While the only forward change at practice was Bains going from the fourth to first line and Nils Hoglander dropping down, it appears that there may be a change on the blue line as well.
After being a healthy scratch for the last five games, Noah Juulsen, who became a dad for the first time last week, was skating with Erik Brannstrom on the third pairing at practice, according to Brendan Batchelor. Juulsen last played on October 15th against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
It looks Vincent Desharnais could be on the sidelines for tomorrow's game against New Jersey. Desharnais has appeared in six games for the Canucks this season, including the last five in a row. The 28-year-old finished last night's game as a minus-two and saw a dip in ice time, finishing at 12:33.
Bains. Pettersson. Garland.
DeBrusk. Miller. Boeser.
Heinen. Blueger. Sherwood.
Höglander. Suter. Sprong.
Extras: Aman, Joshua
Hughes. Hronek.
Soucy. Myers.
Brännström. Juulsen.
Forbort. Desharnais. Batchelor said.
Lineup news for tomorrow's game against New Jersey likely won't be out until closer to puck drop, but if these lines stay the same, it's going to be a big opportunity for Arshdeep Bains, a native of Surrey, British Columbia. Puck drop is set for 7:30 pm PT on Sportsnet One.
| POLL | ||
OCTOBRE 29 | 291 ANSWERS Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet makes significant lineup change - Arshdeep Bains handed promotion Should Arshdeep Bains be on the first line for tomorrow's game? | ||
| Yes | 105 | 36.1 % |
| No | 186 | 63.9 % |
| List of polls | ||
