Coyotes at Canucks
There won't be a dry eye in the house when Daniel and Henrik Sedin - the greatest performers in Vancouver Canucks history - play their final home game Thursday against the Arizona Coyotes. The 37-year-old twins, who announced their retirement Monday and were showered with affection before, during and after Tuesday's 5-4 shootout loss to Vegas in their penultimate contest at Rogers Arena, brought class, dignity and grace to the franchise for 17 seasons.
"I thought we handled it well," Henrik Sedin told reporters after a night in which the fans gave them standing ovations from start to finish with video tributes appearing on the scoreboard throughout the game. "The crowd was great. It's tough to keep your emotions in check when you hear that." It will probably be even tougher to focus Thursday when Henrik plays his 1,329th game and Daniel his 1,305th - all with the Canucks, who will miss the playoffs for the third straight season. "You get a little bit emotional, but you try to look down at the ice and refocus," Henrik told reporters. "It might get worse on Thursday." Last-place Arizona, which trails Vancouver by one point in the Pacific Division, has won two straight by a combined 10-1 and is 17-8-2 since Feb. 7 as it continues its strong finish.
TV: 10 p.m. ET, FS Arizona Plus, Sportsnet East, Sportsnet Ontario, Sportsnet Pacific (Vancouver)
ABOUT THE COYOTES (29-40-11): Antti Raanta (21-16-6, 2.24 goals-against average, .930 save percentage), the NHL's second star last week, is 6-1-0, 1.29, .961 since returning from a lower-body injury March 17. Defenseman Kevin Connauton (11 goals this season) recorded a goal and an assist in Tuesday's 4-1 victory over Calgary, giving him four goals in his last four games and 10 in 30 contests since the All-Star break, while Max Domi (nine goals, 44 points) has a goal and six assists in his last three games. Arizona recorded 23 points in its first 41 games this season and 23 in its last 18.
ABOUT THE CANUCKS (30-40-10): Henrik and Daniel have recorded 1,068 and 1,039 points, respectively, with Markus Naslund third on the club's list with 756 while Daniel has a team-high 391 goals and Henrik a franchise-best 828 assists. Their careers reached a pinnacle in 2010-11, when Vancouver reached the Stanley Cup Finals for the second time in club history, losing to Boston in seven games. Daniel was at his statistical best that season with 41 goals and 63 assists while Henrik recorded career highs of 29 goals and 83 assists the previous year in winning the Hart and Ross trophies with the assists and points club records.
OVERTIME
1. Henrik led the NHL in assists for three straight seasons (2009-12), compiling 225 during that span, while Daniel won the Art Ross Trophy in 2010-11.
2. The Sedins, who helped Sweden win an Olympic gold medal in 2006, will play their final games Saturday in Edmonton.
3. Arizona has won two straight meetings - 1-0 on March 11 and 2-1 on March 7 - after Vancouver won the first of four encounters this season 3-1 on Feb. 25 behind a pair of goals from Daniel Sedin.