Canucks Game Day: Robbery penalties on Gray Cup Sunday?

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Nashville Predators vs. Vancouver Canucks

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When: Sunday at 19, Rogers Arena

TV: SN Pacific. Radio: Sportsnet 650

The buzz: So the Canucks got back in the win column on Saturday against a mediocre Blackhawks team. Almost as mediocre, the Nashville Predators come to town on Sunday riding a three-game losing streak. This is another must-win for Vancouver. They’re getting there, Rick Tocchet said after Saturday’s 4-1 win, but he knows there’s still plenty of growth ahead. His team must play more directly, to play harder. Last spring’s playoff series against the Predators was very much that; Tocchet and assistant Adam Foote can point directly back to that series to show what their team needs going forward, both on Sunday and in general.

The story: The Canucks, of course, won their first-round series against Nashville last April in six games, outscoring Andrew Brunette’s crew by just enough to deliver a solid series win. This is the first meeting of the season between the two.

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The hope: The Canucks have cleaned up against weak opposition this season. Nashville on paper should be better, but instead is somehow even worse than the Blackhawks, who sit at the bottom of the Central Division. The Canucks want to be a hard-working team. They turned up the clock in the second period on Saturday. “We came out with an attack mentality,” veteran Tyler Myers said of his team’s final 40 minutes of the night. They want more of that Sunday.

The fear: The Canucks’ stinker on Thursday happened for many reasons, but most notable was how they struggled with zone entries. If they don’t attack with speed, they’re nowhere, and even weak teams can counter.

The top weapons: He’s been up and down, but JT Miller has six points in five games. Elias Pettersson seems to have bounced back in his step and has three goals in five games.

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The injured: Canucks: Thatcher Demko (knee, week-to-week), Derek Forbort (leg, week-to-week), Brock Boeser (concussion, undetermined). Predators: Austin Roest (undisclosed, week-to-week), Tomas Novak (upper body, day-to-day), Spencer Stastney (personal, undetermined)

The quote: “It will be fun to show that they missed.” – Former Predator Kiefer Sherwood to face his old team on Sunday.

The lineup:

Suter-Miller-Lekkerimaki

DeBrusk-Pettersson-Sherwood

Joshua-Blueger-Garland

Heinen-Raty-Hoglander

Hughes-Hronek

Soucy-Myers

Brannstrøm-Juulsen

The Lankin

The prediction: The Canucks don’t blow anyone out of the water, but when they’ve been on, and that’s been true more often than not, they’ve been tough to break down defensively. There’s no reason to believe they won’t handle more of the same. This will be a close contest: Watch the Canucks win 3-2.

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The latest: Look for Kevin Lankinen to play goal on Sunday after Arturs Silovs was solid against Chicago.

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