This one goes out to the Vancouver Canucks fans living in Europe.
The Canucks' game against the Detroit Red Wings on Sunday starts at an unusual time: 12:30 p.m. EST in Detroit, which is 9:30 a.m. PST out here on the best coast. For those hoping to sleep in on the weekend or heading out to Sunday services, that's an inconvenient time.
For Canucks fans trying to follow their favourite team from Europe, however, these unusual start times are a godsend.
Let's say you're trying to follow the Canucks from jolly old London — England, not Ontario. A typical 7:00 p.m. start time for a Canucks home game starts at 3:00 a.m. GMT for a Londoner.
Similarly, a Canucks fan in Stockholm trying to follow their favourite Swedes in Vancouver would have to wake up at 4:00 a.m. CET to watch a Canucks home game.
But a 9:30 a.m. PST puck drop is pretty much ideal. That's a 5:30 p.m. start in England and a 6:30 p.m. start in Sweden. For once, they get to watch a Canucks game live at a reasonable hour.
Unfortunately, that means a 4:30 a.m. puck drop for Canucks fans living in Sydney, Australia. Sorry, Aussies, this one isn't for you.
In any case, PVRs and streaming mean Canucks fans in B.C. can still sleep in or sit through a sermon and watch the game later on in the day. Just stay off social media for a little while to avoid spoilers. You can do it. I believe in you.
Vancouver Canucks projected lines
Brock Boeser was bumped up to the top line with Elias Pettersson and Jake DeBrusk in the Canucks' overtime win over the Buffalo Sabres and it seems likely head coach Rick Tocchet will go back to that trio against the Red Wings.
There could be other changes to the lineup but there won't be any time for a morning skate given the early start time, so we'll have to wait to see what those changes might be.
Here are the Canucks' projected lines, which will be updated prior to puck drop:
Tocchet's solution to Filip Hronek being out with an injury was to move Tyler Myers up to the top pairing with Quinn Hughes. That worked fairly well but the Canucks' second and third pairings had some struggles. That's to be expected when a top-pairing defenceman leaves the lineup but it highlights the importance of adding another defenceman to the Canucks' roster.
Keep an eye on Max Sasson in this game. The Canucks rookie grew up in the Red Wings' backyard in Birmingham, Michigan and will have plenty of family and friends in attendance at his first game in Detroit.
The Canucks' starting goaltender will be Kevin Lankinen, who is currently unbeaten on the road in nine starts. The only other goaltenders to start a season 9-0-0 on the road are Glenn Hall and Cam Talbot, the latter of whom is currently on the Red Wings.
Talbot and Hall both had their streaks ended in their tenth road starts: Talbot to an overtime loss in the 2023-24 season, Hall to a regulation loss in the 1965-66 season. If Lankinen and the Canucks win on Sunday, he'll set a new record.
Detroit Red Wings projected lines
The Red Wings have been mediocre through the first quarter of the 2024-25 season. They're 25th in goals per game and are middle of the pack in goals against. They do, however, have some offensive firepower at the top of their lineup.
Lucas Raymond has 23 points in 23 games, while Dylan Larkin leads the Red Wings with 12 goals. Shutting those two down, as well as Alex DeBrincat, will be key to beating the Red Wings.
That means staying out of the penalty box. The Red Wings have the fifth-ranked power play in the NHL at 27.9%, led by Raymond's 12 power play points and Larkin's six power play goals, while DeBrincat is right behind with five power play goals.
Here are the Red Wings' projected lines, :
Vladimir Tarasenko - Dylan Larkin - Lucas Raymond
Alex DeBrincat - J.T. Compher - Tyler Motte
Michael Rasmussen - Andrew Copp - Christian Fischer
Joe Veleno - Marco Kasper - Jonatan Berggren
Simon Edvinsson - Moritz Seider
Jeff Petry - Ben Chiarot
Erik Gustafsson - Justin Holl
Ville Husso
Cam Talbot
Former Canucks fan favourite Tyler Motte scored his first goal of the season on Friday against the New Jersey Devils. He missed some time this season after taking a hit to the head in mid-October. He's been getting an opportunity to play with DeBrincat on the Red Wings' second line in recent games.
The Red Wings' starting goaltender was originally expected to be Ville Husso, which would have been good for the Canucks. Husso has lost both of his two starts this season and has an .811 save percentage, compared to Talbot's .916 save percentage. Unfortunately, Talbot ultimately got the start.
