Tocchet does not want Canucks play style to change with DeSmith in net
Vancouver Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet talks about urging his team to not change their style of play regardless of who is in goal with Casey DeSmith set to take Thatcher Demko’s role as starting goaltender.
Hours after the news broke that the Vancouver Canucks will be without starting goaltender Thatcher Demko for Game 2 and possibly longer, the Canucks are down one more man.
Defenceman Tyler Myers did not participate in the pre-game warmup skate and was listed as a scratch prior to puck drop against the Nashville Predators, per the NHL’s roster report.
Noah Juulsen replaced him on the second pairing, alongside Carson Soucy.
Myers, 34, logged 19:08 in Game 1 and was a plus-one on the evening.
The six-foot-four defenceman has, like most of the Canucks, enjoyed a bounce-back season on both ends of the ice, improving to plus-16 on the year while potting 29 points — both measures significantly higher than the minus-16, 17-point season in 2022-23.
The shorthanded Canucks look to take a 2-0 series lead over the Predators at Rogers Arena. Watch all the action on Sportsnet and Sportsnet+ with coverage starting at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT.