Another goalie controversy in Vancouver?
This isn’t Roberto Luongo vs. Cory Schneider by any stretch of the imagination, however, Jakob Markstrom has quietly made a case that he is ready to take over as the Canucks starter in net.
Ryan Miller may have other ideas, but Markstrom, who is 10 years younger, took advantage of his opportunity while Miller (35) was sidelined with a groin injury.
The 6-foot-6 Markstrom made eight consecutive starts while Miller was recovering.
In that stretch of games, the Canucks went 5-2-1 despite scoring just 16 goals.
Markstrom allowed 18 in that span but only had one bad game, a 5-0 loss to Los Angeles.
This season, Markstrom has better numbers than Miller in the key categories.
His record is 6-5-4 while Miller is 10-12-6.
Markstrom has a .920 save percentage and a 2.44 goals against average while Miller sits with a .910 save percentage and a 2.75 GAA.
Miller does not rank in the top 30 in either category.
The NHL average is .916 save percentage and 2.45 GAA.
The Canucks began a six game Eastern road trip with a 4-1 loss in Washington.
To his credit, Miller played well against the league-leading Capitals, stopping 36 of 39 shots in his first action in 2016.
Despite a 17-17-10 record, the Canucks are just two points out of a playoff spot.
With 38 games left, it should not automatically be assumed that Miller will be in net for the bulk of the action.
Going forward, Miller’s advantage is obviously experience but it appears he is on the downside of his successful career.
Performance this season should be the ultimate indicator as to which goalie plays the key Vancouver games down the stretch.
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In all my years of watching hockey I can not recall seeing a team penalized three times in a game for having too many men on the ice.
The Prince George Cougars, inexcusably in a bizarre oddity, were sent to the penalty box on three occasions in a 4-0 loss to the Seattle Thunderbirds, for having an extra skater as a result of a poor line change.
The Cats survived the first two times while shorthanded, but Seattle scored the second goal of the game after the Cats gaffe.
As the too many men on the ice penalties would indicate, the Cougars were not sharp mentally Wednesday against Seattle, a sharp contrast from the previous night which Prince George won handily 6-2.
The Cougars four game home-stand was another example of how one game has nothing to do with the next.
Last weekend against the Victoria Royals, the Cougars scored a 1-0 victory in a superb goaltending battle which was followed the next night by a Royals 4-3 triumph.
The team losing the first of two, historically has had the psychological advantage in game two, as no team wants nothing to show for back to back games.
The Cougars have played 13 doubleheaders (against the same opponent) and there have been nine splits. (P.G. has swept the opposition three times: Edmonton, Calgary and Portland and the Cats dropped both ends of the other double to Vancouver to start the new year).
28 games are left for the Cougars, including eight more doubles.
The Cats have 16 away games remaining starting Saturday at 5 when they visit the last place Vancouver Giants.
Strangely enough, the road team has won all five head to head match-ups this season between the Cougars and Giants.
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The Prince George Spruce Kings started a string of 9 straight games at home Thursday with a 2-0 victory over the Trail Smoke Eaters, just their 11th win in 43 games.
In a wacky schedule, the game against Trail was the Spruce Kings first at the P.G. Coliseum since December 11th, a span of nearly five weeks.
Who’s the brains behind having a massive gap between home games?
The Spruce Kings only have 15 games remaining, with 12 of them on home ice.
This may seem beneficial, but because they have dug themselves such a gigantic hole by playing poorly on the road, they
have virtually no chance of making the playoffs.
Prince George is 16 points behind the Coquitlam Express for the last post-season berth in the Mainland Division, and the 4th place Express have two games in hand.
In other words, the (11-29-2-1) Spruce Kings need to win 10 of their last 15 while the (18-18-4-1) Coquitlam loses 15 of its last 17.
Obviously, this notion is beyond far-fetched.
In addition, the Spruce Kings dealt their top older players at the BCHL trade deadline for younger prospects, which was the right thing to do when a team has written off the season.
The Spruce Kings are out of the running, in part, because they are just 5-18-2-1 on the road.
Sure they aren’t much better in their own building (6-11) but part of this may be attributed to a lack of a proper balance in their road and home schedule.
The Spruce Kings wanted to avoid a game at the P.G. Coliseum the same night the Prince George Cougars played at CN Centre.
I understand the reasoning and there were just two home conflicting dates, however, the Spruce Kings need to lobby for a schedule next season that will be much more player and fan friendly.
From the Quote Rack:
Rex Ryan is sorry he couldn’t come through with his promise of taking the Bills to the playoffs. He said that he tried to get 53 tickets to the Carolina/Seattle game but none were available.
Comedy writer TC Chong of Vancouver http://alwaysfunny.com/
Johnny Manziel now seems to have disappeared and not even the Cleveland Browns know where he is. Even Lindsay Lohan is beginning to think this guy needs help.
Contributor Janice Hough of Palo Alto, California www.leftcoastsportsbabe.com
The upside to Johnny Manziel possibly getting dealt to the Cowboys? He can get a ride home from nightclubs with Jerry Jones.
Comedy writer RJ Currie www.Sportsdeke.com
And in case you missed it:
Former heavyweight champ Mike Tyson has endorsed Donald Trump. Tyson joins Trump’s biggest group of supporters: ‘People Who Have Been Hit in the Head a Lot.’
Conan O’Brien of TNT
Hartley Miller is the sports director and morning news anchor for 94.3 the Goat. His column appears Fridays on myprincegeorgenow.com. Send along a quote, note, or anecdote to [email protected]
Follow him on twitter: @Hartley_Miller