The Vancouver Canucks, led by Elias Pettersson and his $92.8 million deal, are as depleted as any team in the sport right now. JT Miller took a leave of absence and Thatcher Demko and Brock Boeser are hurt. They put together a nice outing on Tuesday night but it wasn't enough.
Despite a resilient effort, Vancouver fell to the New York Rangers by a score of 4-3. A coverage breakdown allowed Chris Kreider an open shot that he put to the short side of Vancouver goalie Arturs Silovs. It gave them the lead with 9:17 remaining and they did not relinquish it.
Via Sportsnet, Pettersson acknowledged the critical mistake:
“Yeah, it's frustrating. It stinks now. Just like on the fourth goal, I tried to protect (the puck). Zibanejad made a good play to lift my stick. (I was) flat-footed, they make two good passes and score a goal. Things like that, I've got to make a better play obviously.”
The Canucks fell to 9-6-3 on the season. Captain Quinn Hughes reiterated that his team has a lot of fight left in it this year despite the poor start and the circumstances it finds itself in now.
Canucks coach addresses tough loss to Rangers
Thanks to a critical mistake by Elias Pettersson and the Vancouver Canucks, the New York Rangers stole a game with a late goal. Canucks coach Rick Tocchet said these are the kind of things, as well as the loss of several players lately, that teams must overcome.

He said, via Sportsnet:
“It's adversity. It's the stuff we went through last year, too. I love this because, you know, we're going to get some bodies back. I thought there was a step (tonight). I thought guys played harder tonight — certain guys I thought played harder, which is a good thing (because) we need them."
The Vancouver boss said he loves the doubt, that it "galvanizes" a team. He knows reinforcements are on the way in the form of several All-Stars. In the meantime, he also admitted that some guys are getting valuable playing time in pressurized games, which will help them down the stretch.
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