VANCOUVER – “Come to the coast, let's get together and have a little laugh.”
It's easy to imagine Vancouver Canucks sarcastically reminiscent of John McClane, Bruce Willis's beleaguered and bloodied character in the film. Die Hard.
Every time the Canucks come home to Vancouver, we say, “Sure, support the fans, use home ice to your advantage, get some wins.”
In their penultimate home game of 2025, the Canucks beat the San Jose Sharks 6-3 on Saturday, one of the teams that still looks attractive to Vancouver in the National Hockey League standings. Nearly three months into this season, the Canucks have won four times at Rogers Arena.
They are 4-11-1 on home ice this season. It's like they're playing at Nakatomi Plaza.
After going 4-1 on the road before Christmas, improving their road record to a creditable 11-8-2 (only three teams have posted more road wins since the holiday break), the Canucks lost in Vancouver for the sixth time in seven games.
And although there was an unfortunate own goal and a strange non-call (and non-call) with what would seem to be quite obvious goalkeeper interference in the Sharks' first goal, Vancouver fully deserved the defeat.
After a four-day layoff, the Canucks started smoothly, a step behind the fast-paced Sharks for much of the first two periods, and lost 37–27 to a team that had lost its previous three games by a combined score of 16–7.
“It's not good enough” Conor Garlandmuttered one of the Canucks, who was good enough, after the game. “We deserved this result. It's just, you know, we didn't make enough plays. I also don't think we got to the net enough. I just don't think we were good overall.”
After three weeks of improved defensive play, in which the Canucks allowed just 23.5 shots per game through 10 games even as they fell to the bottom of the NHL standings, Vancouver has taken 119 shots on goal over the last three games. Taking into account Saturday's empty net, the opponents scored 15 goals.
“We also gave up a lot at the beginning of the year,” defender Marcus Pettersson said. “I just think we have to be tougher in our checking. Sometimes we get a little hesitant, thinking you want to protect (the area) and you get too far away from your checking. The last goal was a prime example. I'm protecting the front of the (goal) but I get too far away from (McLean) Celebrini and that gives him space to shoot. So yeah, we've given up a lot. A lot of it is turnovers.”
Celebrini, a 19-year-old from North Vancouver who has become a key member of Canada's Olympic team, was Saturday's top player with a goal and an assist, eight shots on target and 16 attempts in 21:47 of ice time.
Faster, sharper and more decisive than the Canucks at the start, the Sharks led 2-0 within eight minutes and won, although Vancouver cut the two-goal deficit in half three times.
The Canucks never recovered from a controversial opening goal when Ryan Reaves put the puck in the net from under the goalie. Thatcher DemkoGlove at 6:11 of the first period. The deflected puck leaked past the goalie, but Demko found it in time, reached back with his blocker and appeared to cover the puck before Reeves blasted through it with his stick.
Referee Graham Skilliter called the goal good on the ice and, even more surprisingly, Canuck coach Adam Foote, after consulting with his staff, decided not to challenge that dubious interpretation even after Demko raised his hand immediately after the goal.
During a television timeout that followed the goal, Demko drove straight to the bench to talk to Foote. Twice.
“I mean, when I found it, I took it with my hand and knocked it out,” the goalie said of the play. “And then he put my whole arm in the net. I mean, you see competitions where guys kick and whatever in the net and they usually get answered.”
Demko said he thought the Canucks should have challenged the goal.
Foote said, “It would have been hard to see from that (camera) angle if he had her completely covered, but our guys didn't think it would be called back.”
Sometimes coaches demand a review just to show their players, or their goalkeeper in particular, that he has their back. But Saturday was not that time for Foote.
A master of sharing the ball like most goalies, Demko looked out of sorts when play resumed and was sliding to his right, wondering behind a moving screen when John Klingberg's wrister from the point beat him to the left to make it 2-0 at 7:55.
Demko said the second goal had nothing to do with the first.
“I didn’t like the second one,” he said of his performance. “Didn't like the fourth. I thought we should have challenged the first. Tough bounce from the third. But yeah, I thought I just needed to play better. I thought I did some good and some bad.”
“Thatcher wasn’t the problem today,” Foote said, defending his goalie after the game. “It was more that we just weren't ready to start. You can't get into the game and we got a little stuck.”
The Canucks got goals from Linus Karlsson on the power play, Drew O'Connor on the shorthand and Marco Rossi at even strength, the latter was the first in six games against Vancouver since Quinn Hughes was traded to the Minnesota Wild.
But the center also scored an own goal to put the Sharks up 3-1 at 12:38 of the second period when he tried to clear the puck as it bounced off William Eklund's stick in the Vancouver slot but instead tipped it over Demko and into the net.
“A lot of things happened (with the deal), but I think we were able to digest it a little bit,” Pettersson said. “We should have jumped more tonight.”
• After missing eight games with an undisclosed injury, top center Elias Pettersson is back in the Canucks lineup. He had three shots on net but finished down three in 20:47 of ice time. . . Center Filip Chytil, sidelined Oct. 19 with another serious concussion, skated with teammates Saturday morning in a non-contact jersey.
