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The Vancouver Canucks could be switching things up for a massive Game 4 against the Edmonton Oilers.
With the chance to take a 3-1 series lead on the table, head coach Rick Tocchet teased reporters by saying he’s considering a new lineup.
“Might have one lineup change, we’re not 100% sure yet,” said Tocchet this morning in Edmonton.
This would be in addition to the forced insertion of Noah Juulsen for Carson Soucy due to the latter’s one-game suspension.
The Canucks had a lightly attended optional skate this morning, which makes it difficult to discern what the possible lineup change will be. Nils Åman and Linus Karlsson made their playoff debuts last game, and Tocchet seemed pleased with their play.
While he didn’t give any more clues as to what the coaching staff is pondering, we can make some educated guesses based on recent happenings. The lineup adjustment could be due to performance or injuries, which are kept secret in the NHL at this time of year.
That change will not involve winger Phil Di Giuseppe who is still in Vancouver due to personal reasons. He will join the team at practice tomorrow if they decide to hold one, confirmed Tocchet today.
The addition of Juulsen into the lineup means that the next defenceman up is Mark Friedman. It seems unlikely the Canucks would insert him into an already depleted defence corps unless maybe the player coming out is a forward, and they use seven defence for tonight’s game.
The more likely scenario is a swap of wingers in the forward group.
Sam Lafferty has zero points during these playoffs and hasn’t played more than nine minutes in any of the last four games. He’s a candidate to come out.
In terms of who could be coming in, both Vasily Podkolzin and Nils Höglander sat out last game. They’re two of the most experienced extras the Canucks are carrying on this trip and would be strong candidates to play tonight if Tocchet needed another winger.
We’ll get a better idea of the switch Tocchet is contemplating when the Canucks take the ice tonight at Rogers Place.
Game 4 starts tonight at 6:30 pm PT as the Canucks look to build on their 2-1 series lead.