And so it begins….. The Canucks face division rivals Calgary tonight. I, for one, am ready to get this year going. Even though I have a very strong feeling that this year will not be a winning one. Without the Sedins, this team will have to create a new identity and new leaders will have to emerge on the ice and off. It is a weird to know that this team will lose a lot of games and yet still be excited to see what this team will turn into. Pettersson, Boeser and Bo will get most of the attention this year, but will guys like Schaller and Beagle provide the spark that is need in the bottom six. The opposition is coming into this year full of optimism and new faces. Calgary has Giordano as the face of the defense, but he now has Harmonic, Hanifin and rookie Valimaki to get the puck to his slapshot. There are some new names up front as well for the Flames. Neal, Lindholm, Czarnik and Dube will be asked to boost the offense in a very tough Pacific division. Much like the Canucks, the biggest question mark is in net. Mike Smith can be great or injured. Those seem to be his two settings. The only way the Flames make it to the playoffs is if the former was to occur. The Canucks need to use their speed and make sure their special teams are special if they want a chance to win tonight. Go Coconuts Go! !<doc-sep>Share this Story: Canucks Game Day: Fanning the Flames of a new season Canucks Game Day: Fanning the Flames of a new season Photo by DARRYL DYCK / THE CANADIAN PRESS Article content Tonight Calgary Flames at Vancouver Canucks We apologize, but this video has failed to load. tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Canucks Game Day: Fanning the Flames of a new season Back to video 7 p.m., Rogers Arena, SNETP, SNET 650 AM THE BIG MATCHUP Fast vs. fast The Flames are touting their approach this year as playing faster than last year, forechecking harder but more importantly working to retain possession more than ever. The Canucks say they need to play faster and they need to get their defence more involved. So just how fast will this game actually be? FIVE KEYS TO THE GAME 1. Canucks power play The home team is going to live or die by their work with the man advantage this season. With Brock Boeser patrolling the left wing and Elias Pettersson on the right, the Canucks have strong options on the attack. 2. Flames experience There’s no denying the difference between these two lineups. The Flames have a powerful and deep defence. They’ve got strong, experienced depth up front. The Canucks on the other hand have the same group of defencemen as last season, a group that struggled to generate offence. There are some exciting forwards, but there’s not a lot of scoring depth. Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content 3. Pettersson power Where Elias Pettersson goes, so will the Canucks. It’s a lot to ask of a young player, especially one who is playing his first NHL game, but there’s no denying the 19-year-old’s talent. He’ll play on the second line to start but there’s no doubt he’ll already draw much attention from opponents. 4. Does Lindholm have it? Elias Lindholm was brought in to add a new look to the Flames’ offence. A former first-rounder, he’s been a solid second-line forward for the Hurricanes, but the Flames think there’s even more to be found. 5. Crease crash Jacob Markstrom is set to start his first clear season as the Canucks’ No. 1. He finished last year well but can he carry that forward into this season? At the other end for the Flames, veteran Mike Smith just needs to stay healthy. Can the 36-year-old get off on the right foot? CANUCKS LINES Forwards Sven Baertschi – Bo Horvat – Brock Boeser Nikolay Goldobin – Elias Pettersson – Loui Eriksson Tyler Motte – Brandon Sutter – Jake Virtanen Tim Schaller – Jay Beagle – Markus Granlund Defence Alex Edler – Chris Tanev Michael Del Zotto – Troy Stecher Derrick Pouliot – Erik Gudbranson Starting goalie: Jacob Markstrom Sick Bay Antoine Roussel (concussion) FLAMES LINES Forwards Jonny Gaudreau – Sean Monahan – Elias Lindholm Dillon Dube – Derek Ryan – James Neal Matthew Tkachuk – Mikael Backlund – Michael Frolik Sam Bennett – Mark Jankowski – Austin Czarnik Defence Mark Giordano – TJ Brodie Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content Noah Hanifin – Travis Hamonic Juuso Valimaki – Michael Stone Starting goalie: Mike Smith Sick Bay None SPECIAL TEAMS Power play (last season) Canucks: 21.5% (9th) Flames: 16.0% (28th) Penalty kill Canucks: 78.3 (21st) Flames: 81.8% (8th) • Join our White Towel: Let’s talk Canucks Facebook group to read the latest news, chat with our writers and have your say on the team. Go to facebook.com/theprovince and click on “Groups.” CLICK HERE to report a typo. Is there more to this story? We’d like to hear from you about this or any other stories you think we should know about. Email vantips@postmedia.com Share this article in your social network Latest National Stories Advertisement Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The Province Headline News Sign up to receive daily headline news from The Province, a division of Postmedia Network Inc. Email Address There was an error, please provide a valid email address. By clicking on the sign up button you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. You may unsubscribe any time by clicking on the unsubscribe link at the bottom of our emails. Postmedia Network Inc. | 365 Bloor Street East, Toronto, Ontario, M4W 3L4 | 416-383-2300 Thanks for signing up! A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it please check your junk folder. The next issue of The Province Headline News will soon be in your inbox. We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try again Trending<doc-sep>Article content And Elias looked down upon the goal he created and declared it was good. And it was good. It’s not known on which day of that first week Elias Pettersson was created, but everyone who watches hockey in Vancouver is thankful he was. We apologize, but this video has failed to load. tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Canucks 5, Flames 2: A star is born as Pettersson scores in debut Back to video The Swedish Kid opened his NHL account in perfect fashion Wednesday night in a 5-2 win for the Vancouver Canucks over the Calgary Flames and nothing else mattered. Not even the free beer — or water, or soft drink — handed to each fan at Rogers Arena mattered. Pettersson sniped a top-corner wrist shot on a first-period rush, a shot so vicious it seemed as if to curve space to create the gap between Flames goalie Mike Smith’s shoulder and the post he was hugging and the crossbar he was seeking to cover. The bend Pettersson put on his stick was something else to behold and when you saw the replay, you saw how he was able to create such power from such a tight angle. And where he shot from was deeply deceptive. It was almost as if he was setting up to pass across the slot to an onrushing Derrick Pouliot, but from high above it never really looked as if he was going to pass. “I was trying to go high on Smith and it went in,” Pettersson said calmly after the game. “An amazing feeling, a feeling I’ll never forget.” “My first thought was to pass but their D had pretty good gap control.” He also had an assist, setting up Nikolay Goldobin at the left side of the net after a Loui Eriksson — who had put Pettersson in the clear on the first goal — shot from the top of the slot was stopped dead in its tracks by Noah Hanifin. Pettersson grabbed the loose puck before Hanifin could find it in his feet and flipped it quickly to Goldobin, who made no mistake in firing it home. (Unlike the first preseason game, when he was on the other side of the crease but couldn’t find the back of the net as the Oilers’ netminder, Cam Talbot, snagged it.)<doc-sep>VANCOUVER -- Elias Pettersson had one thought when he hit the ice before his first NHL game Wednesday -- stay upright. The 19-year-old Vancouver Canucks centre said he knew about the league's tradition of initiating rookies with a solo skate during warm up, but hoped his teammates might make an exception. "Maybe I thought they would forget it because it was lonely, not that fun," he said after the game. "My only focus was not to fall." Not only did Pettersson stay on his feet, he scored his first NHL goal on his first shot and tallied two points in the Canucks' 5-2 win over the Calgary Flames. He got on the scoresheet midway through the first period, collecting the puck in the neutral zone and then sprinting into Calgary's end with teammate Derrick Pouliot for a two-on-one. Pettersson opted not to pass, instead rocketing a wrist shot into the top of the net. That brought the fans to their feet and prompted chants of "Petter-sson," a reaction that wowed the young Swede. "Everyone on the team congratulated me, including the coaches. And then I didn't expect a standing ovation from the crowd. So that was amazing," said Pettersson, whose parents were among those in attendance at Rogers Arena. His teammate Erik Gudbranson said the former star of the Swedish Hockey League was an "absolute stud" in his NHL debut. "One of the most impressive things about him is how responsible he is and how competitive he is," Gudbranson said. "If he turns the puck over, he's right back on it and he takes it away from you. He doesn't give up anything. He plays the game incredibly well." Even Calgary's netminder Mike Smith had kind words for Pettersson. "He made a great shot, he put right in the top corner. I got a piece of it with the glove, but yeah I have heard quite a bit about this young kid and he let her go and hit the perfect spot there," Smith said. All of Vancouver's goals Wednesday night came from players under the age of 25. Brendan Leipsic, Jake Virtanen, Nikolay Goldobin and Tyler Motte -- on an empty-netter -- all scored in the season opener. Goldobin added an assist and veteran centreman Loui Eriksson had a pair of helpers. Matthew Tkachuk and Sean Monahan responded for the Flames. Canucks goalie Jacob Markstrom turned away 20 of 23 shots, while Smith stopped 30 of 35. Vancouver head coach Travis Green said Markstrom was great in net, but played better when they were up 1-0 in the first than 4-1 in the third. "We got a little sloppy with the puck. That was not a Picasso by any means," he said. "You're never going to complain about a win, but we're going to go over every game and continue to teach these guys." Green said he wants to see his squad be better on their sticks and take fewer penalties. Calgary was unable to capitalize on any of their seven power-play chances Wednesday. Flames head coach Bill Peters said his team had speed on the breakout, but lacked execution. "Not enough pace, and not enough execution on it and not enough desperation," he said. "At one point, I think through 40 (minutes) we were 1 for 7 on faceoffs on the power play, so it's an important part of the game." Capitalizing when your team has an advantage is key, said left winger James Neal, who signed with the Flames as a free agent in July. "The power play is crucial, it wins and loses you games. There's no excuse, we've practiced it enough, we should have been a little bit more crisp," he said. "We just have to be better on the power play. We score one of those goals early and it's a different game." The Flames and Canucks will have a rematch Saturday in Calgary, the first stop in a six-game road trip for Vancouver.<doc-sep>
Vancouver Canucks vs Calgary Flames Rogers Arena, Vancouver. BC When: 7:00 PM PST Where to watch: SN Where to listen: Sportsnet650 Opposition Blog: Matchsticks And Gasoline The Sedin Era is over. And tonight the Vancouver Canucks officially begin life without two of the greatest to ever don the (insert the myriad of uniform choices here). And with that, we begin a new era. One of players like Elias Pettersson, Brock Boeser, and Bo Horvat. And while much of the Canucks youth movement is still seasoning in Utica, the future is bright, friends. Believe this. The present day? Hang onto your butts, because this is gonna get ugly. The Canucks have gotten younger, but that’s more because of the median age going down with the retirement of Daniel and Henrik than any additions. And while offensively they are a faster team, this defence still gives me night terrors. And it’s going to be tested big time by a Calgary team that’s a little different than Flames teams we’re accustomed to seeing. They’re younger, faster and are putting together a team that can go toe to toe with anyone in the Pacific Division (though I still think they need to improve their goaltending, as Mike Smith can’t possibly be the answer, right?). Here’s the Canucks lines for tonight (via the Province) Forwards Sven Baertschi – Bo Horvat – Brock Boeser Nikolay Goldobin – Elias Pettersson – Loui Eriksson Tyler Motte – Brandon Sutter – Jake Virtanen Tim Schaller – Jay Beagle – Markus Granlund Defence Alex Edler – Chris Tanev Michael Del Zotto – Troy Stecher Derrick Pouliot – Erik Gudbranson Starting goalie: Jacob Markstrom Sick Bay Antoine Roussel (concussion) Obviously a lot of attention will be focused on Lines 1 and 2, but it will be interesting to watch the 3rd line, with Tyler Motte and Jake Virtanen both needing to bring it on a consistent basis if they hope to stay in Vancouver and not end up getting shuttled down to Utica. I don’t even know what to tell you about that 4th line. I suppose if they end up not being a liability that should be looked at as a victory of sorts. And in an effort to try not to be so negative this season, I am going to say something nice about the defence. Here goes. They’re healthy at the moment. Forwards Jonny Gaudreau – Sean Monahan – Elias Lindholm Dillon Dube – Derek Ryan – James Neal Matthew Tkachuk – Mikael Backlund – Michael Frolik Sam Bennett – Mark Jankowski – Austin Czarnik Defence Mark Giordano – TJ Brodie Noah Hanifin – Travis Hamonic Juuso Valimaki – Michael Stone Starting goalie: Mike Smith Sick Bay None As you can see this is a much different Flames team, with a lot of new faces. The Flames did a fabulous job in the off-season, and have a nice blend of youth and experience, skill and grit that should give the Canucks (and other opponents) fits. As mentioned, 36 year old Mike Smith is a question mark and the Flames goaltending depth isn’t a strong suit, but the d-men in front of him should help. This game will come down to the offensively challenged Canucks trying to convert on opportunities and hoping that Jacob Markstrom can hold down the fort with a porous d-core in front of him. GAME DAY BATTLE HYMN Irish thrashers Gama Bomb are set to unleash a new album on AFM Records ‘Speed Between The Lines’ October 12th, and have released a couple videos from it so far. I’m a big fan of their Exodus-inspired riff fests, and can’t wait to hear the entire album. Enjoy the game and make sure to swing by the game thread!