Henrik Sedin game-time decision for Canucks
Written by on February 9th, 2012 in Latest News.
Vancouver Canucks captain Henrik Sedin took to the ice for the morning skate Thursday and is a game time choice against the Minnesota Wild.
Sedin told reporters he felt fine, one day after missing practice.
He suffered a right ankle injury in the team’s 4-3 win over Nashville earlier this week after blocking a point shot from defenceman Kevin Klein in the first period.
The Canucks said another X-ray found no break, after a first reading was inconclusive.
Sedin leads the NHL with 41 assists and is fourth with 57 points. He has played in 552 consecutive games, and is seven games back of Calgary’s Jay Bouwmeester for the longest active streak in the NHL.
The Canucks on Thursday recalled right wing Mike Duco from the American Hockey League.
Roberto Luongo has shut out the Minnesota Wild three straight times, but his last three starts at Xcel Energy Center have been a stark contrast.
Luongo’s five regular-season shutouts of Minnesota (25-20-8) are his most against any opponent. He has stopped 90 shots in three straight shutouts against the Wild, but those outings have been at home.
It’s been a different tale in Minnesota, where Luongo has a 7.00 goals-against average in losing three straight starts while being pulled every time. Cory Schneider replaced Luongo in the third period of a 6-2 loss there Oct. 19, 2010, and has since started all three of the Canucks’ visits to Xcel Energy Center.
Since Schneider started the teams’ only matchup at Minnesota this season — a 5-1 loss Nov. 3 — Luongo has been in net for the past two meetings and posted his only shutouts of the season.
Luongo has started eight of the last nine games overall for Vancouver (33-15-5), and he’s opened its four-game road trip by winning shootouts in Colorado and Nashville.
“We’re going to be involved in a lot of tight games,” Luongo said. “We gotta find out ways to win. The last couple have been a shootout, which are nice, but that’s the kind of hockey we’re going to be involved in especially coming down the stretch.”
Vigneault split up the Western Conference’s most prolific teammates by starting with Henrik and Daniel Sedin on different lines in the Nashville game.
Key stretch
The twins, but, found themselves together on the ice for a key 23-second stretch in the first period in which Henrik helped on goals by Byron Bitz and Daniel. Bitz, a new linemate for Henrik, also helped on Daniel’s goal.
“Obviously it was a matter of time before the twins got back together,” Vigneault said. “I was able to at the end of one of those power plays place them back together because of the killers that we used and that’s when Bitz got his back-to-back points.”
The brothers have combined for 14 points in four 2011-12 meetings with Minnesota. Daniel Sedin has 11 points during a six-game run against the Wild.
Minnesota may not have a excellent option in goal. Niklas Backstrom is 0-4-1 with a 3.78 goals-against average in his last five starts against the Canucks while backup Josh Harding is 1-4-0 with a 3.38 GAA in five career starts against them.
Vancouver’s last seven games have been chose by one goal — five in shootouts — while Minnesota had a run of four straight such games end with Tuesday’s 3-1 loss at Columbus. The Wild were outshot 14-7 in the first period, and coach Mike Yeo was displeased with the effort throughout.
“The reality is that I don’t reckon we deserved to win the game,” Yeo said. “It’s a game of one-on-one battles and they got the better of us — by a large margin — in that department tonight.”
Minnesota has gone 3-4-1 since losing Mikko Koivu to an upper-body injury, scoring exactly one goal five times in that span. Koivu, second on the team with 33 points, has been cleared to play.
Top goal scorer Dany Heatley has an help for his only point against Vancouver this season.
