It was the epic practice scuffle that defined a generation. In one corner, the gritty, emotional J.T. Miller; in the other corner, the struggling superstar, Elias Pettersson. Their clash at practice would have stunning repercussions for not just the Vancouver Canucks, not just the NHL, but reality itself.
Or not.
On Wednesday, Miller and Pettersson got into it during a drill. From talking to media members who were there, it went beyond the typical battles you see at practice, with the two slashing each other, Miller giving Pettersson a stiff crosscheck in the chest, and some heated words. With a three-day break between games, this fracas dominated the Canucks news cycle, with fans and media alike speculating about what this might mean about their relationship, team chemistry, and the price of tea in China.
It was excruciating.
Let's be clear, not even the most plugged-in insider knows exactly what goes on in the Canucks' locker room. A single clash between two star players provides little to no insight into that room. The amateur psychology being perpetrated the last few days has been utterly without merit.
When asked if it was really worth talking about, Miller was blunt: “No.”
When Pettersson was asked about the incident, he said, "It's good. I think we should practice with an edge."
When Rick Tocchet was asked about it, he said, "I didn't even think about it" and "it's not even a big deal."
So please, can we just give it up?
Here's the one thing I'll say about it: if Pettersson breaks out with a big performance against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday night, the clash with Miller deserves zero credit. Pettersson has been steadily improving every game and has found some chemistry with Nils Höglander and Conor Garland. While he hasn't scored any goals himself, he's hit posts and crossbars and set up his teammates for numerous grade-A chances.
To me, Pettersson looks like a player who is adapting to some new physical limitations and learning how to use his intelligence, vision, and playmaking to still be a dominant player. That's going to take time and hard work to sort out, not a brief scuffle with a teammate.
“It’s easy to look at the stats and say I stink, but I think I’ve been better the last games," said Pettersson. "All I can do is keep on making plays and see what happens.”
Vancouver Canucks projected lines
Despite a three-game winning streak, the Canucks will be switching up their lines to start their homestand. It won't be a major change, but Daniel Sprong is expected to draw into the lineup for Nils Åman.
Sprong has been a healthy scratch for three games this season as the coaching staff tries to work with him to improve his defensive game.
Here are the projected lines for Saturday night against the Penguins:
Jake DeBrusk will once again skate with Miller and Brock Boeser on the top line. Their chemistry is a work in progress, according to Miller.
"It's getting better," said Miller. "I think we have more in the games in the games in the sense of O-zone possession time.I think we've been kind of one-and-done and it's kind of frustrating. I think we're looking to have a better game as a line.
There's also the question of whether Miller will be taking faceoffs, as he had Brock Boeser taking the bulk of the draws for his line in the last few games after he suffered an injury to his left arm on the opening faceoff against the Philadelphia Flyers.
"I feel pretty good," said Miller. "This has been a good time frame to take some steps this last week to try to do the right things when we only have one game in five or six or seven days, whatever it was. So, I feel good, it's coming along."
After getting sent down to the AHL for a day, both Arshdeep Bains and Erik Brännström will be in the lineup on Saturday. Derek Forbort will reportedly be rejoining the team today but won't play, while Dakota Joshua still needs more time to get back up to speed.
The Canucks' starting goaltender will be Kevin Lankinen for the fourth-straight game.
Pittsburgh Penguins projected lines
The Penguins are struggling to start the season, with a 3-5-1 record and a minus-12 goal differential. Still, they shouldn't be taken lightly. Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin remain as dangerous as ever and they're getting scoring throughout their lineup.
The primary issue for the Penguins isn't scoring goals; it's preventing them. They're giving up the third highest rate in the league of goals against at 5-on-5.
That was the issue in their last game against the Edmonton OIlers on Friday night, as the Oilers scored three goals at even strength, then added a fourth goal on the power play to deal the Penguins a 4-0 loss.
The Penguins mixed up the lines after the loss, bumping Rickard Rakell up to the top line and bringing in Valtteri Puustinen for Cody Glass. Here are the lines:
Drew O'Connor - Sidney Crosby - Rickard Rakell
Anthony Beauvillier - Evgeni Malkin - Bryan Rust
Michael Bunting - Lars Eller - Valtteri Puustinen
Kevin Hayes - Noel Acciari - Jesse Puljujarvi
Marcus Pettersson - Kris Letang
Matt Grzelcyk - Erik Karlsson
Ryan Graves - Jack St. Ivany
Alex Nedeljkovic
Joel Blomqvist
Former Canuck Anthony Beauvillier skated on the third line on Friday but was moved to the second line with Evgeni Malkin for tonight's game.
After Joel Blomqvist started Friday night against the Oilers, the Penguins' starting goaltender will presumably be Alex Nedeljkovic against the Canucks. Nedeljkovic has struggled in his two starts, with an .869 save percentage.
