By Canadian Press

Stamkos, Predators break out against Canucks amid slow start to season

Nov 17, 2024 | 11:10 PM

VANCOUVER — When the Nashville Predators signed free agents Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault and Brady Skjei on July 1, many observers declared them the clear winners of the NHL off-season.

But results — and goals — have been hard to come by. The Predators were tied for last place in the NHL standings before meeting the Vancouver Canucks on Sunday at Rogers Arena. Then, they scored five goals on the road for the first time all year to earn a 5-3 victory.

“We’re growing, we’re building,” said Nashville coach Andrew Brunette. “It’s just been a slow, slow grind for us right now.”

The win was fuelled by a pair of power-play goals from Stamkos, who moved past Mike Gartner and Jaromir Jagr into 11th place all-time with 219 career tallies with the man-advantage.

“Just hearing those names, it’s obviously pretty cool as a hockey fan in general to move past some Hall of Fame quality players,” Stamkos said. “I’ve obviously played in the league a long time, so I’ve certainly had my fair share of power-play goals and played with some pretty awesome players along the way that have given me those opportunities.”

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Stamkos’s first of the night brought the Predators into a 2-2 second-period tie after Elias Pettersson had put Vancouver ahead with a power-play goal of his own.

After accepting a pass from Roman Josi at the left face-off dot, Stamkos drifted up high in the zone before snapping a wrister past Kevin Lankinen.

Josi put the Predators ahead for good just over two minutes later, and Stamkos connected for his second of the night with 22 seconds left in the second — sliding down low to convert a cross-ice pass from Marchessault.

“Overall, I liked our five on five (game),” said Canucks coach Rick Tocchet. “Obviously, the PK wasn’t good. That kind of was the difference in the game.”

Strong on the road this season with a 6-1 away record, the Canucks continue to struggle to find consistency on home ice. They’ve yet to win back-to-back games and have now given up five goals or more in five of their 10 home games.

“There’s parts of our game that we want to get better at, and we need to change the habits,” said Canucks defenceman Tyler Myers. “Whether it’s stops and starts, supporting each other, talk, communicating on the ice better to help each other in different situations.

“But that’s part of the year. You have to keep building. You can’t dwell on anything bad that’s happening. You just have to keep working together, come in tomorrow or the next day and figure out ways to get better.”

Vancouver’s top-line centre J.T. Miller played a Canucks career low 11:41 on Sunday. But when asked if Miller saw limited action due to concerns about an injury issue that has lingered since pre-season, Tocchet succinctly said, “No.”

After being part of the penalty kill for Stamkos’s 4-2 goal, Miller saw just two shifts in the third period.

“He wasn’t one of the guys I thought could get us back in the game,” Tocchet said.

With a 2-3 record on their current homestand, the 9-5-3 Canucks will host the New York Rangers on Tuesday before heading out for a six-game road trip. At 6-10-3, the Predators will finish their current trip in Seattle on Wednesday.

SEEING DOUBLE

The Canucks called up 20-year-old defenceman Elias Pettersson — not to be confused with the team’s star centre — from the American Hockey League’s Abbotsford Canucks on Sunday. The third-round pick from 2022 took warm-up but did not make his NHL debut.

PLAYING FOR A CURE

The Canucks held their annual Hockey Fights Cancer night on Sunday. Special guests included twins Weston and Bennett Openshaw, who were diagnosed with leukemia at the age of two but completed their last round of chemotherapy last month. They participated in the ceremonial faceoff while wearing the jersey of Canucks winger Dakota Joshua, who returned to action this week after undergoing treatment for testicular cancer. Longtime Canucks broadcaster Joey Kenward was also on hand to share his story. After being diagnosed with leukemia last year, he is now in remission following a stem cell transplant.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 17, 2024.

Carol Schram, The Canadian Press