Canucks vs Jets: Can Vancouver End Their Losing Streak?

Vancouver Canucks at Winnipeg Jets

Where/when: Thursday, 5 p.m., Canadian Tire Centre

TV: Sportsnet Pacific

Radio: KiSS 104.9 FM

Brock Boeser has seen a lot as the longest-serving current member of the Canucks.

The right winger has enjoyed the good, endured the bad, and survived the ugly stuff that comes with a roster rebuild that is testing his mettle and temperament.

Boeser is seeing progress for the NHL's last-place club to stay in games and get closer to elusive victories.

“We’ve been playing a lot better recently and that last game (5-4 loss to Anaheim) was another we thought we could have won, but our special teams weren’t good enough,” he said Thursday morning.

“We have to be on the same page for the penalty kill as a four-man unit and just making sure we’re making our clears and staying fresh.

“We’ve been getting stuck out there kind of chasing the puck around and teams have been scoring.

“We have to dial it in.”

That is the bad.

The good is starting to become more visible.

“Just all over the ice,” added Boeser.

“We’re breaking pucks out a lot more cleanly and getting into the offensive zone.

“We’re getting more shots and opportunities to score.

“That’s a huge step in the right direction.

“We’ve just got to get over the hump.

“Some small details have cost us goals and games.

“Our confidence level is a lot higher as a group and we have to make sure it stays that way.

“We have to be ready right out of the gate.”

The Vancouver Canucks (3-13-1) head into tonight's road matchup against the Winnipeg Jets (5-8-3) desperate to halt a three-game losing skid and steady what has been a historically brutal start to their season.

Sitting at a disappointing record, Vancouver's biggest Achilles' heel has been an abysmal penalty kill that has plummeted to just 63.2%.

That puts them on pace for one of the worst special teams statistics in NHL history.

Head coach Manny Malhotra is demanding defensive accountability after a chaotic 5-4 home loss to Anaheim on Tuesday, where the team's late third-period push could not overcome the three power-play goals they surrendered.

The lineup faces further stability challenges on the road as center Filip Chytil did not travel with the team due to an upper-body injury.

Compounding their troubles, starting netminder Kevin Lankinen is looking to shake off a massive slump, currently carrying a tough .812 save percentage.

Despite the defensive woes, the Canucks' top offensive stars have continued to produce, and the team will rely heavily on them tonight to steal a victory at Canada Life Centre.

The Winnipeg Jets look to carry momentum into tonight's home matchup against the slumping Vancouver Canucks.

On Tuesday, Winnipeg snapped a devastating nine-game losing streak by staging the latest four-goal comeback in NHL history.

The Jets scored four times in the final 2:39 of regulation before defeating Montreal 5-4 in overtime.

Looking to spark the offense further, the team officially recalled 21-year-old forward Brayden Yager from the Manitoba Moose this morning.

Yager is projected to immediately slide onto a newly revamped second line centering Cole Perfetti and trade-acquisition Dawson Mercer.

Meanwhile, off the ice, former franchise netminder Connor Hellebuyck issued an emotional letter to Winnipeg fans via Instagram addressing his recent high-profile trade to New Jersey.

Head coach Scott Arniel will lean heavily on this adjusted lineup to solidify their defensive structure and string together consecutive wins.

The buzz around this game is about more than just the standings.

The fights were applauded as much as the spirited third-period comeback on Tuesday.

For all the convenient and necessary talk of a collective commitment to navigate a rough roster rebuild for the NHL's last-place club, finding the fight to not be blown out on the scoreboard, or literally beat up on the ice, is crucial.

Going quietly into the night is a sign of disturbing times.

There is losing a game, and there is losing your way.

The Canucks did not win Tuesday, despite rallying from a 5-2 deficit to nearly force overtime in a 5-4 loss to the Anaheim Ducks.

But they showed something.

A backbone to not back down from several fights and enough push to nearly have their day.

That kind of moxie could deliver a knockout blow Thursday.

The low-flying Winnipeg Jets, who have one win in their last 10 games (1-7-2), are surrendering goals at an alarming rate and will be tested by a Vancouver team that is starting to find its offensive rhythm.

The struggling Jets have a Canucks killer in Kyle Connor.

He has 17 goals and 40 points in 30 games against Vancouver.

Vancouver Canucks projected lines include DeBrusk – Pettersson – Boeser on the top line, followed by Ohgren – Rossi – Lekkerimaki, O'Connor – Quillan – Karlsson, and Cotter – Sasson – Gallagher.

Defensive pairings are Pettersson – Hronek and Oleksiak – Buium.

The Jets counter with a lineup that now includes Yager centering Perfetti and Mercer on the second line.

Special teams will likely decide this game.

Vancouver's penalty kill is operating at 63.2%, which is on pace to be among the worst in NHL history.

Winnipeg's power play has been inconsistent but showed life in the comeback against Montreal.

The Canucks have allowed three power-play goals in each of their last two losses.

If they cannot clean up that area tonight, the losing streak will almost certainly reach four games.

Faceoffs will also be critical.

Vancouver has struggled in the dot all season, and losing Chytil only deepens that problem.

Winnipeg's centers, particularly Mark Scheifele and now Yager, will look to exploit that weakness.

The goaltending matchup favors nobody.

Lankinen is in a deep slump with an .812 save percentage.

Winnipeg's netminders have been equally shaky since the Hellebuyck trade.

Both teams are searching for consistency in net.

Whoever gets the timely save tonight will likely get the win.

The Canucks have not won since October 25, a stretch of five games.