Vancouver Canucks Gameday Preview #73: Kane Hits 1,000 Against The Vegas Golden Knights

The Vancouver Canucks (21-43-8) continue their road trip on Monday as they visit the Vegas Golden Knights. Both teams have struggled as of late and have combined for just five wins over their last 20 games. Based on the standings, Monday is a must-win for Vegas as they are dangerously close to the playoff bar. 

Monday will feature a debut from the Golden Knights side as John Tortorella will be behind the bench for the first time. Vegas announced on Sunday that they had fired Bruce Cassidy and replaced him with Tortorella. Earlier this year, Tortorella helped Team USA win Gold at the 2026 Winter Olympics and brings over 1,500 games of experience behind the bench. 

Shifting to the Canucks, all the focus remains on whether they can sort out their second-period issues. Vancouver is the only team that has allowed over 100 goals against in the second, as they enter Monday's game with 103 against in 72 games. At this stage of the season, the team needs to show some level of progress, which could be as simple as not allowing a goal in the middle frame against the Golden Knights.  

Players To Watch:

Evander Kane:

Monday will feature a milestone moment for Evander Kane as he skates in his 1,000th career regular-season game. In 999 career games, the 34-year-old has 338 goals along with 647 points. As for this season, Kane has played 69 games and recorded 30 points. 

Mitch Marner:

All eyes will be on Mitch Marner and how he responds to Tortorella taking over as coach. The 28-year-old has not lived up to expectations in his first year with Vegas, but he does sit second on the team with 71 points in 73 games. The question now is, can Tortorella help Marner unlock another level, or will personalities clash over the next few weeks?

Vancouver Canucks (21–43–8): 

Points: 

Elias Pettersson: 15–30–45

Filip Hronek: 8–33–41

Brock Boeser: 17–21–38

Jake DeBrusk: 16–18–34

Linus Karlsson: 13–18–31

Goaltenders: 

Thatcher Demko: 8–10–1

Kevin Lankinen: 8–25–5

Nikita Tolopilo: 5–7–2

Jiří Patera: 0–1–0

Vegas Golden Knights (32–26–16): 

Points: 

Jack Eichel: 25-53-78

Mitch Marner: 20-51-71

Mark Stone: 23-41-64

Pavel Dorofeyev: 34-26-60

Tomas Hertl: 24-30-54

Goaltenders: 

Akira Schmid: 16-10-6

Adin Hill: 9-9-5

Carter Hart: 5-3-3

Carl Lindbom: 2-4-2

Game Information: 

Start time: 7:00 pm PT 

Venue: T-Mobile Arena

Television: Sportsnet

Radio: Sportsnet 650

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