Pre-Game: Game #82 Oilers vs. Canucks

So this is it. Game #82 is mercifully here and then, "hopefully", the bloodletting can stop and the healing can begin. Losing is a habit that is difficult to stop. Once it becomes abundantly repetitive, its habits become engrained in you until the point you need an exorcism to get rid of it. The more I think about things, the more I believe the re-signing of Ales Hemsky was a Daryl Katz move. It's a move that made very little sense for the Oilers organization, but screams of a long time fan that didn't want to see his hockey hero leave. There are reasons why fans aren't management types. Its because they need to remove the "fan" out of hockey making decisions and make solid hockey decisions for now and into the future. Now the Oilers are stuck trying to create a line around Ales Hemsky, something the Oilers haven't been able to do with much success over Hemsky's entire tenure here. The Canucks come into this game, losing 3-2 in Calgary on Thursday night. The Canucks will head into the Stanley Cup Playoffs as the #1 seed in the Western Conference. High hopes and expectations for the Canucks this spring. As long as the Oilers don't walk away with two points out of this game, they will finish 29th in the NHL.

Forwards Canucks
- The Sedins haven't had the point totals they have in the past, but they have been just as effective this year.
Defense Canucks
- Canucks have 4 solid Dmen in Bieksa, Edler, Salo and Hamhuis.
Goaltending Canucks
- Corey Schneider might be pushing for the Vezina this year if he could manage to get some more games in.
Special Teams Canucks
- Oilers PP and PK are 3rd and 14th while the Canucks are 6th and 6th. Slight edge Canucks.
Coaching Canucks
- Alain Vigneault has an excellent feel for his hockey team.
Intangibles Canucks
- Essentially a mean nothing game for both teams, more of a tune-up game for the Canucks.

Oilers:
Hartikainen-NugentHopkins-Eberle
Jones-Gagner-Hemsky
Smyth-Horcoff-Belanger
Hordichuk-Vandevelde-Petrell

Whitney-Schultz
Barker-Petry
Sutton-Potter

Dubnyk
Khabibulin

Canucks:
Lapierre-H.Sedin-Burrows
Raymond-Kesler-Booth
Higgins-Pahlsson-Hansen
Weise-Ebbett-Bitz

Edler-Hamhuis
Gragnani-Bieksa
Salo-Rome

Schenider
Luongo

Game Time - 8 PM MT @ Vancouver on CBC.