The Vancouver Canucks face the Toronto Maple Leafs with both teams looking to improve from rough starts to the season. The Canucks have a 4-7-3 record and are near the bottom of the Pacific Division while the Maple Leafs have a 7-4-3 record and are in the middle of a competitive Atlantic Division. The Canucks are hoping to improve from their slow start and climb out of the bottom of the Pacific Division while the Maple Leafs look to continue to gain ground in the Atlantic Division, making the upcoming game a crucial one for both teams.
The Canucks have struggled this season despite their offense stepping up and scoring 3.50 goals per game including 19 goals in the last four games. Elias Pettersson, Bo Horvat, and J.T. Miller have scored 25 goals and 22 assists to lead the top two lines but the rest of the offense has stepped up as well. Andrei Kuzmenko, Conor Garland, and Ilya Mikheyev have combined for 14 goals and 13 assists while defenseman Quinn Hughes is adding 12 assists from the blue line to open up the offense.
The offense has looked great but the defense has been one of the worst in the NHL, allowing 4.07 goals per game. Quinn Hughes and Luke Schenn have combined for 1.2 defensive point shares and 29 blocked shots to lead the top two pairings but the rest of the unit has been awful, allowing open shots on the net at will. Moreover, goaltender Thatcher Demko has struggled in the net with a .874 save percentage and a 4.01 g oals-against average on 318 shots.