VANCOUVER — The match was only four minutes, but you already knew it was going to be a major turning point one way or another.

Barely four minutes into the first period, with the Canucks already led 1-0, Jesper Bratt received a double minor penalty for high stick Quinn Hughes. Vancouver’s power play has been under scrutiny for some time. Since last season’s All-Star break, the Canucks’ power play is 19 percent through 41 games, which ranks them 25th in the standings. NHL. The game was a draw against the Hurricanes on Monday and head coach Rick Tocchet proclaimed changes were coming.

Either the Canucks’ power play would silence the noise on this four-minute opportunity, or the club would view this as a huge missed opportunity to dig a hole early on. It was an ugly power play, with the Canucks unable to generate a single true A-level chance.

This killed the club’s momentum and set the tone for the rest of the evening as the Canucks lost 6-0 to the Devils Wednesday evening.

The Canucks’ power play looks miserable; JT Miller demoted from higher unit

There is no silver bullet to fix the Canucks’ power play, as they seem off-kilter in many different areas.

In the four-minute double minor, they seemed a half-second too slow in making decisions and moving the puck. Nothing seemed easy or instinctive. This difference in pace made the power play static and predictable. The Devils were able to anticipate Vancouver’s attempts to make cross-field passes and place sticks in the lane to disrupt them.

When New Jersey was able to clear the puck, it was a nightmare for Vancouver to get into the zone cleanly and set up, which has been a glaring problem in recent games. Vancouver’s second unit, which got off to a promising start with Daniel Sprongthe goal in the first match of the season against CalgaryIt didn’t look any better.

You can’t blame the poor power play performance on one individual, but Elias PetterssonThe shooting is worrying. Pettersson’s one-timer terrorized teams during his rookie season; now it doesn’t even seem like an option they’re looking for. During his 102-point campaign in 2022-23, Pettersson has taken 163 power play shot attempts in 80 games, or about two per game. Before the New Jersey game, he had only made three shot attempts in eight games.

On the Canucks’ third power play, in the final seconds of the first period, Pettersson had the puck with plenty of time and space in the slot. He even had a clear lane to get closer to the net because a New Jersey penalty fell on the faceoff. Pettersson took his time gathering the puck and fired a shot straight into Jacob Markstromthe chest. He simply lacked the authority and conviction expected of an elite sniper.

Rookie year Pettersson would have absolutely sniped this and Rogers would have gone BONKERS pic.twitter.com/epydgQfdAn

– Vanessa (@bigsportsvan) October 31, 2024

It would be unfair to focus solely on Pettersson, as he was far from the only problem. Miller’s botched turnover in the offensive zone led to Nicolas HischierThe two-on-one shorthanded goal.

New Jersey scores shorthanded. 2-0 Devils. #Canucks | #NJDevils
: Sportsnet | NHL pic.twitter.com/YFLpsreXqo

– Canucks Army (@CanucksArmy) October 31, 2024

Miller and Conor Garland were relegated to the second power play unit at the next opportunity, with Sprong and Jake DeBrusk move forward.

Artūrs Šilovs’ tough night and the Canucks’ porous defense

The Canucks net decisively belongs to Kevin Lankinen until Thatcher Demko returns.

If that wasn’t already evident with Lankinen’s excellent play and five consecutive starts before Wednesday, Šilovs’ poor performance against the Devils cemented it. The 23-year-old Latvian conceded six goals on just 22 shots. He was slow to react on the last two goals, in particular.

Truth be told, the Canucks could have had the better Roberto Luongo in net and the outcome wouldn’t have been much different. After getting torched by the Hurricanes last game, the Canucks once again let A-level chances slip away in transition and cross-court passes.

Three of the Devils’ first four goals were scored off the rush. It was a combination of turnovers, bad pinch-ins and poor positioning/lackadaisical counter-pressing from F3. There are some obvious growing pains as the Canucks attempt to open up their system to generate more offense.

Tyler Myers and the Canucks’ second pair is struggling

Vancouver’s second duo, Carson Soucy and Myers, didn’t set the world on fire last year, but more than held their own. The Canucks were about break even in controlling shots, scoring chances and scoring goals during their five-on-five lineups, which was a win considering they often faced the toughest matchups against the best opposing players. In the playoffs, they were stuck in the defensive zone for long periods, but they limited the damage defensively with a hard-nosed, bend-but-don’t-break style of play.

Myers had found a way to simplify his game, reduce mistakes and stay in good position. Soucy, meanwhile, was an excellent shutdown presence with his long, long stick, mobility, and above-average defensive IQ.

This year, the Canucks’ second pairing is not only struggling to get the puck out of the defensive zone, they are also making some unusual defensive mistakes. New Jersey’s first goal less than a minute into the game is a prime example.

Myers pinched thinking he might step in and disrupt the Devils’ escape. He found himself caught in no-man’s land and New Jersey raced up the ice on the counterattack for a two-on-one rush. Soucy failed to intercept the dangerous east-west pass and Hischier fired a shot past Šilovs.

Nico Hischier gives the Devils a 1-0 lead at the start of the first period. #Canucks | #NJDevils
: Sportsnet | NHL pic.twitter.com/nxZQMfpcqO

– Canucks Army (@CanucksArmy) October 31, 2024

The Soucy-Myers pair was outshot 51-24, controlled just 38 percent of expected goals and was outscored 6-2 at five-on-five heading into Wednesday’s game against New Jersey . Myers was on the ice for three goals against and the Canucks were outscored 12-4 during his five-on-five on Wednesday.

It’s been less than 10 games and these are two veteran defensemen who have a long track record of playing much better than that, so we’re not hitting the panic button, but improving the second pairing should be the top priority of management before the trade deadline.

(Photo of Nico Hischier of the Devils scoring on Artūrs Šilovs: Bob Frid / Imagn Images)