LATEST | Rick Tocchet shares his disappointment in the team's performance: Highlights what cost the two points

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Cooper Godin
March 14, 2024 (8:47)

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The Vancouver Canucks took on the Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday night at Rogers Arena and while they started the game strong, it all fell apart in the third period.

Vancouver went up 3-0 thanks to goals from J.T. Miller, Nikita Zadorov and Ilya Mikheyev, but the Avalanche would bounce back, scoring three straight goals and forcing overtime. The Avalanche had a powerplay in the extra frame and it was Valeri Nichushkin who ended the game, with the puck going off his visor from a Nathan MacKinnon shot and past Casey DeSmith.

After the game, Vancouver Canucks Head Coach Rick Tocchet met with the media and wasn't too happy with his team's performance, especially late in the game.

Tocchet told reporters that he thought the Canucks were soft with the puck in the third period and needed certain players to dig in. He also praised Nathan MacKinnon for taking over the game, who finished the game with a goal and an assist.

"MacKinnon said 'I'm taking this game,'"Tocchet said. "They started to go, MacKinnon and them started to fly, and we just couldn't get anybody to grab hold of a puck, whether it's on a forecheck or a breakout, just to kind of slow things down. We were a little hot potato [with the puck] and we were kind of soft on the puck, mostly in the third."

He added, "We need some guys to dig in on certain situations and we couldn't get anybody to grab a puck for us and hold it."

The Canucks will look to turn things around very quickly as they continue their nine-game home stand on Saturday night as they host Alexander Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals at Rogers Arena. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m. PT/10 p.m. ET and can be viewed nationally on Sportsnet.

Source: TSN