Oilers 3, Canucks 2, (SO): Pre-season pace ramps up, but where's J.T. Miller?

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What’s up with J.T. Miller?

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Regardless of plot lines and priorities as the Vancouver Canucks faced the Edmonton Oilers in a pre-season test Monday night — will centres Aatu Raty and Max Sasson make most of another look, will there be a better box-out at both ends of the ice, and how will goalie Kevin Lankinen perform? — only one question needed to be answered.

And it wasn’t how to contain Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. It was the status of Miller.

For the record, the Canucks had a glorious chance to score in overtime Monday as Daniel Sprong pivoted high in the slot, but was denied by a Draisaitl tripping minor with 26.3 seconds remaining. Draisaitl and Viktor Arvidsson then connected in the shootout to seal the 3-2 win as Jonathan Lekkerimaki hit the post and Sprong was denied.

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Arshdeep Bains and Nate Smith struck for the Canucks in regulation while Corey Perry and Ben Gleason scored for the Oilers. The Canucks also kept Brock Boeser, Danton Heinen, Jake DeBrusk, Elias Pettersson, Conor Garland, Quinn Hughes, Filip Hronek, Carson Soucy and Tyler Myers at home, so their effort Monday was impressive.

“The group did a really good job,” lauded Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet. “I’m proud of them with the way they stuck with it and we did a nice job. And Lankinen was really good for us, good on handling pucks on dump-ins and helped our defence a lot. There are still some plays to be made but that will come. There’s still some summer hockey in us but it was a solid effort tonight.”

Now, back to Miller.

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The NHL’s ninth-ranked point producer last season has yet to play a pre-season game and only one remains Friday before the Canucks start playing for keeps on Oct. 9. Tocchet said his star centre, who piled up a career-high 103 points (37-66) and nine game-winners in 2023-24 will suit up Friday in the pre-season finale against the Oilers at Rogers Arena.

According to the bench boss, Miller has been working on “stuff”.

“We’ve just kept him out to work on some stuff and he wanted to work on stuff on the ice and he felt it was better,” said Tocchet. “He came in as our second best guy (fitness testing) and we have other guys vying for a job.”

So, what are we to read into this? Caution? Concern? Neither?

With a revamped roster, Tocchet wanted his leadership group leading by example in practices. Be first to do drills and do them hard and do them right. Is it a stretch to suggest Miller may have tweaked something? Maybe. Maybe not. Take treatment and then put it to the test under more controlled situations in practice? That would buy time until Friday and the season opener.

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Then again, Miller stayed out late after the last practice to work on stuff. He will always tell you he strives to get better every day and maybe that’s what is really at play here. He’s hard on the opposition and harder on himself to live up to management’s faith and the coach’s trust.

Bains’ bid to be ‘that guy’

The undrafted Bains played eight NHL games last season because Tocchet saw something in the Surrey native, who kept working at his game with the AHL affiliate in Abbotsford and finished with 55 points (16-39) in 59 games.

Like all roster hopefuls, the 23-year-old Bains knows he’s running out of time to make a lasting impression. On Monday, the left winger worked well on a line with Pius Suter and Sprong. There was a first-period sequence where Bains tried a wraparound attempt that led to Suter and Sprong banging away at loose puck at both posts. There was also a good forechecking and battle presence by Bains.

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Bains parlayed that presence into a second-period goal on the Canucks’ first power play. Sprong found Kiefer Sherwood down low beside and net and he spotted an open Bains, who roofed a quick shot for his first goal of the pre-season.

“It was a good power play and we talked about the backdoor being open and Woody (Sherwood) made a good play and I was ready for it,” said Bains. “We kind of drew that one up.”

Bains then showed his smarts by holding the puck at the offensive blue-line to buy time before setting up Suter for a Grade A chance from the slot.

“We came out strong and it was a full 60-minute game and we almost got it done in the end,” said Bains. “They’re a tough team over there and we handled it pretty well. I’m trying to get the best out of myself and it’s a good pressure because we’re all pretty excited to get closer to the season.”

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Lankinen plays as advertised

The book on Lankinen is that the Finnish stopper is much more than a one-year, US$875,000 insurance policy as Thatcher Demko continues to rehab a knee muscle injury.

At his best, Lankinen is a competent backup capable of more. He logged 24 games with the Nashville Predators last season, and in a tandem with workhorse Juuse Saros, he compiled a credible 11-6-0 record, 2.82 goals-against average and .908 saves percentage.

Lankinen believes he can be a starter, but supplanting Saros, 29, wasn’t going to happen, not with his book of work and a mammoth eight-year, $61.92-million extension signed July 1 that kicks in for the 2025-26 season.

On Monday, Lankinen made 24 saves and looked calm and square to the puck and more than capable of sharing the net with Arturs Silovs.

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“He’s awesome,” said Bains. “He can play the puck better than anyone and he’s really strong back there. We’re confident in him and it showed today.”

There was a sharp save on an Arvidsson one-timer on the power play off a feed from Draisaitl in the opening period and he foiled the winger on four occasions, including in overtime. There were two saves off former Canucks winger Vasily Podkolzin on sweet McDavid feeds and then stopping the Oilers captain on two occasions. Troy Stecher would also have three shots.

Lankinen was then patient to deny Mattias Janmark going far side. He was finally beaten on the 19th shot as the Canucks couldn’t clear the zone in the third period and started chasing. McDavid went wheeling and dealing to Perry, who was allowed to breeze by rookie defenceman Elias Pettersson and tuck one home far side.

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And when Gleason then struck on the power play, the Canucks showed resilience by responding just 19 seconds later on a deflection by Smith, who had three shots. Lankinen then stopped Gleason off a 2-on-1 and then Arvidsson and Draisatil again in overtime.

Carrot dangles for Hoglander

Nils Hoglander has had considerable chemistry with countryman Elias Pettersson.

The Swedes get along on and off the ice and the fact that Hoglander managed a career-best 24 goals at even strength last season puts him in the conversation of being a Pettersson partner again this coming campaign.

Hoglander did the work in the off-season to take the next development step after being held to one goal in 13 playoff games — and it’s paying off.

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On Monday, Hoglander was aligned with Lekkerimaki, who finished with four shots, and Raty. And while Hoglander didn’t muster a shot, his positional play was evident and so were smart decisions. He finished with three hits, and most importantly, wasn’t a liability.

“We have to give him a lot of credit,” said Tocchet. “The next level is the playoffs and how can he play better in those situations. Whether he took it to heart, we told him what he had to do this summer and came in as one of our best (shape) guys.

“His conditioning is better and with his patience with the puck, I’ve seen a difference. Now, it’s sustainability like everyone else. Can you do it game in and game out?”

bkuzma@postmedia.com

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