Simmer’s-Canucks AM Skate: Avalanche with BC Edge, Huge Goalie Decision

There are zero former Vancouver Canucks in the Stanley Cup Final, although 32-year-old forward Jayson Megna did play 20 regular season games for the Avalanche this season and he is one of the black aces (playoff taxi squad) for the club. You might recall the righty forward played 58 games for the Canucks in 2016-’17 with 4 goals and 4 assists and then participated in just one game the following season.

The other day I already brought up the fact that two BC natives play for the Avalanche. 28-year-old lefty D-man Devon Toews from Abbotsford is a regular, who we interviewed here in Vancouver during the Fraser Valley floods, and just turned 21-year-old, as in, on Monday, lefty D-man Bowen Byram.

Our pal and reader ‘Puckerglen’ poo-poo’ed it because he noted to us that Byram’s hometown of Cranbrook is a “Calgary market”, but c’mon, it’s BC! Byram then played four seasons for the Vancouver Giants in the Western League. Toews played two seasons for Surrey in the BCHL.

— Oh, and an add-on by the space cadet; Hockey Hall of Famer, Avalanche GM and Burnaby native Joe Sakic. — Duh.

Meanwhile …

Tampa Bay Lightning Head Coach Jon Cooper is a Prince George native. Does that trump everything?

That’s it!! That is the only native BC association that we’re aware of for the Tampa Bay Lightning. And no former Vancouver Canucks.

Wait, Zach Bogosian, the burly right-shot defenceman, he was rumoured to be coming to Vancouver a couple times … does that count?!

So, besides the folks in Cranbrook, Abbotsford, and maybe Penticton who will be rooting for Colorado, does any of this mean anything to you? This entire miniature exercise was essentially done so Vancouver Canucks fans could let us know at VHN who they’re rooting for starting this evening and why?

Or maybe you’re ignoring the Stanley Cup Final all together.

Goalie, Goalie

So who’s it going to be? As of late Tuesday night we still didn’t know who the Avalanche’s starting goaltender was going to be for Game-1, although the presumed starter was Darcy Kuemper, rather than the man who replaced him in the Western Conference Final when Kuemper was hurt, Pavel Francouz.

Either way, the Tampa Bay Lightning have the goaltending advantage with Andrei Vasilevskiy.

‘Butch’ Heads to the Western Desert

That’s right pardner, Bruce ‘Butch’ Cassidy heads west. That was the big news in the NHL from Tuesday. Eight days after being fired by the Boston Bruins, Cassidy takes over the helm as the third head coach in the history of the Vegas Golden Knights.

So what about all of these other guys vying for jobs? Still waiting to hear about Barry Trotz, John Tortorella, Pete DeBoer, and the list goes on.

Been a few days since I’ve had a chance to say this, Vancouver Canucks readers …

Enjoy the Hockey Action !!