Kevin Lankinen falters, offense dries up, and more: 3 takeaways from Vancouver Canucks’ 7-2 loss to Edmonton Oilers

The Edmonton Oilers and the Vancouver Canucks met on Saturday since the Canucks ousted Edmonton in the second round of the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs in a thrilling seven-game series.

Just as it was in the postseason, the Oilers emerged on top again - though the outcome was hardly in doubt, as Edmonton earned a decisive 7-2 win and another two points in the standings.

Six Oilers players found the back of the net, including Corey Perry, Leon Draisaitl, Viktor Arvidsson, Connor McDavid and Brett Kulak, while Connor Brown scored twice. Meanwhile, the Canucks got goals from Elias Pettersson and Filip Hronek.

Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner made 17 saves on 20 shots he faced in a winning effort, while Kevin Lankinen had his first sub-par outing since joining the Canucks, making 20 saves before being pulled in favor of Arturs Silovs.

The win improved the Oilers to 7-7-1, while the Vancouver Canucks dropped to 7-3-3. On that note, let's examine the three biggest takeaways from Edmonton's shellacking of the Canucks at Rogers Arena.

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Three biggest takeaways from the Vancouver Canucks' loss to the Edmonton Oilers

#1 Kevin Lankinen has his first bad game

Lankinen had been a Godsend for the Canucks, stepping into the starter's role with ease and helping Vancouver advance through the early goings of the season without the injured Thatcher Demko.

Unfortunately, his run of near-flawless play came to an end against the Oilers, as he was victimized seven times. However, Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet deflected all blame away from Lankinen, saying that his rare poor outing was the last thing the team had to worry about.

“He’s a competitor. He hung in there," Tocchet said. "It’s 3-2; he made a couple of (saves). There was an empty net and somehow he gets his stick on it. This guy’s a fighter. He’s the least of our problems.”

#2 Brock Boeser's presence is missed in offense

Playing without their leading goalscorer since he suffered an upper body injury, thanks to a dirty hit from Los Angeles Kings forward Tanner Jeannot clearly had an effect on the Canucks.

They mustered only 20 shots on goal while also having trouble breaking through the neutral zone or establishing any kind of real presence in Edmonton's end, especially in the opening 20 minutes.

#3 Elias Pettersson finds the scoresheet again

The Swedish star forward has largely struggled to begin the year and has earned justifiable criticism, but his play against the Oilers was one of the rare positives the team can take.

He looked more like his old self, tallying his third goal of the season - something the Vancouver Canucks hope can build his confidence moving forward.