Game Notes: Canucks at Rangers

LAST GAME PLAYED – DEC. 14/25: VAN 2 at NJD 1
Jake DeBrusk opened the scoring on the power play 1:01 into the opening frame…Conor Garland and Zeev Buium had the assists…Buium scored his first as a Canuck on the power play 5:47 later…Garland and Thatcher Demko had the helpers…Luke Hughes got New Jersey on the board 4:02 into the second…DeBrusk had four shots…D Elias Pettersson had six hits…Marcus Pettersson, Tyler Myers, and Marco Rossi each blocked three shots…Thatcher Demko made 25 saves.
LAST 5 – vs NEW YORK
- Oct. 28/25: VAN 0 vs NYR 2
- Mar. 22/25: VAN 3 at NYR 5
- Nov. 19/24: VAN 3 vs NYR 4
- Jan. 8/24: VAN 6 at NYR 3
- Oct. 28/23: VAN 3 vs NYR 4 (OT)
ON THIS DATE
- The Canucks have played 21 times on December 16 in the franchise’s history, holding a record of 10-8-2-1.
- This includes a 3-4-1-1 record on the road.
- Vancouver has a record of 4-0-1 in their last five games on December 16.
HERE COMES THE BUIUM
- With a goal and an assist on Dec. 14/25 at NJD, Zeev Buium became the first defenceman in franchise history to record multiple points in the first period of his Canucks debut, and the third to record multiple points in his Canucks debut overall.
- With an assist on Jake DeBrusk’s goal 61 seconds into the game, Buium became the fastest player to record a point in his Canucks debut since Todd Bertuzzi on Feb. 7/98.
- Recording the game-winning-goal on Dec. 14/25 at NJD, Buium became the fourth defenceman to score the game-winner in his Canucks debut, and the first overall since Brock Boeser on Mar. 25/17 at MIN.
- Buium now ranks t-5th in points by rookies this season, and second amongst rookie defencemen.
- Buium’s 12 assists place him 5th amongst all rookies and second amongst defencemen.
JAKE THE SNAKE
- Opening the scoring on Dec. 14/25 at NJD, Jake DeBrusk registered his eighth power play goal of the 2025.26 season, tied for second in the league.
- DeBrusk’s 22 power play goals since the start of the 2024.25 season rank third in the NHL over that span.
WELCOME TO THE SQUAD
- Marco Rossi, Liam Öhgren, and Zeev Buium were acquired from the Minnesota Wild on Dec. 12/25.
- Rossi, 24, is a native of Feldkirch, Austria, and has appeared in 202 career games, posting 114 points (49-65-114) and 87 penalty minutes. He posted a career-high 60 points (24-36-60) in 82 games in 2024.25 and has 13 points (4-9-13) in 17 games in 2025.26.
- Öhgren, 21, is from Stockholm, SWE, and has played in 46 career NHL games (including 18 in 2025.26), recording seven points (3-4-7) and two penalty minutes. In 2024.25 with the Iowa Wild (AHL), he posted 37 points (19-18-37) in 41 games.
- Buium, 20, hails from San Diego, CA, and is in his rookie season, having posted 14 points (3-11-14) in 31 games. He made his NHL debut on Apr. 20/25 in Game 1 of Minnesota’s first round series against the Vegas Golden Knights.
A WILD NIGHT OF FIRSTS
- Scoring his first NHL goal on Dec. 6/25 vs MIN, Tom Willander became the third defenceman from the 2023 draft class to score their first NHL goal.
- Adding an assist on Dec. 6/25, Willander also leads all defencemen from the 2023 draft class in assists (7) and is first for first in points (8).
- With two goals and an assist on Dec. 6/25 vs MIN, Aatu Räty recorded the first three-point game of his career.
- Räty’s first goal on Dec. 6/25 vs MIN also stood as the game-winning goal, the first GWG of his career.
MOVIN’ ON UP
- Scoring Vancouver’s second goal on Nov. 28/25 at SJS, Elias Pettersson passed Pavel Bure for the seventh-most points in franchise history (479).
- Recording an assist on Nov. 26/25 at ANA, Elias Pettersson tied Pavel Bure for the seventh-most points in franchise history (478).
- Pettersson also passed J.T. Miller for the 10th most assists in franchise history.
- With the opening goal on Nov. 23/25 vs CGY, Filip Hronek passed Jaroslav Modry for the ninth-most points by a Czech defenceman in NHL history (250).
- Scoring two goals on Nov. 17/25 at FLA, Elias Pettersson passed Stan Smyl for the seventh-most multi-goal games (31) in franchise history.
- Recording two points (1-1-2) on Nov. 14/25 at CAR, Elias Pettersson passed Tony Tanti for eighth on the franchise’s all-time scoring list (472).
- With his goal on Nov. 14/25 vs CAR, Elias Pettersson passed Todd Bertuzzi for 12th on the Canucks all-time goals list (189).
- Assisting on two goals on Nov. 11/25 vs WPG, Elias Pettersson passed J.T. Miller for ninth on the franchise’s all-time multi-assist game list (60).
BROCKSTAR
- Opening the scoring on Nov. 28/25 at SJS, Brock Boeser passed Todd Bertuzzi for 10th in the Canucks all-time scoring list (450).
- Recording an assist on Nov. 26/25 at ANA, Brock Boeser tied Todd Bertuzzi for 10th on the Canucks all-time scoring list (449).
- With his game-winning goal at 14:15 of the third period on Nov. 8/25 vs CBJ, Brock Boeser passed Tony Tanti and tied Brendan Morrison for the seventh-most game-winning goals in franchise history.
- Scoring the overtime winner on Nov. 3/25 at NSH, Brock Boeser tied Tony Tani for the eighth-most game-winning goals in franchise history (29).
- Recording an assist on the overtime winner on Oct. 26/25 vs EDM, Brock Boeser tied Daniel Sedin for the third-most overtime assists (15) in franchise history.
- The assist also moved Boeser passed Sami Salo and Alex Edler for fourth on the Canucks all-time overtime points list (18).
MR. MILESTONE
- With an assist on Elias Pettersson’s second period tally on Nov. 28/25 at SJS, Evander Kane reached the 300-assist milestone for his career.
- Kane becomes the fifth player from the 2009 draft class to have both 300 career goals and 300 career assists, joining John Tavares, Matt Duchene, Ryan O’Reilly, and Nazem Kadri.
- Scoring his first goal as a Canuck on Nov. 3/25 at NSH, Evander Kane became the 500th different player to score a goal for Vancouver.
- The Canucks have become the 11th franchise in NHL history to hit the mark, and the first post-1967 expansion to hit it.
MAN ON A MINSK-SSION
- Making 37 saves in his season debut on Nov. 26/25 at ANA, Nikita Tolopilo set a new record for most saves by a Belarusian goaltender in a game in NHL history.
MYERS MILESTONES
- Recording an assist on Marcus Pettersson’s goal on Nov. 16/25 at TBL, Tyler Myers notched both the 300th assist and 400th point of his career. He becomes the eighth defenceman from the 2008 draft class to hit the 300-assist mark, and seventh defenceman to reach 400 career points.
RECENT TRANSACTIONS
- Arshdeep Bains placed on waivers, Dec. 16
- Marco Rossi activated from Injured Reserve, Dec. 14
- Elias Pettersson placed on Injured Reserve retroactive to Dec. 5, Dec. 14
- Lukas Reichel placed on waivers and designated non-roster waiver status, Dec. 13
- Marco Rossi, Liam Öhgren, Zeev Buium, and a 2026 first round pick acquired form Minnesota in exchange for Quinn Hughes.
- Thatcher Demko activated from Injured Reserve, Dec. 11
- Nikita Tolopilo reassigned to Abbotsford, Dec. 11
- Nils Höglander activated from Long-Term Injured Reserve, Dec. 8
- Jett Woo placed on waivers for the purpose of assignment to Abbotsford, Dec. 8
- Jonathan Lekkerimäki reassigned to Abbotsford, Dec. 7
- Nikita Tolopilo recalled from Abbotsford under emergency conditions, Dec. 4
- D Elias Pettersson recalled from Abbotsford, Dec. 4
- Jiri Patera reassigned to Abbotsford, Dec. 4
- D Elias Pettersson reassigned to Abbotsford, Dec. 3
- Nikita Tolopilo reassigned to Abbotsford, Dec. 3
- Jiri Patera recalled from Abbotsford under emergency conditions, Dec. 1
- Nikita Tolopilo designated Non-Roster, Dec. 1
- Jonathan Lekkerimäki recalled from Abbotsford, Nov. 29
- Jiri Patera reassigned to Abbotsford, Nov. 29
- Jiri Patera recalled from Abbotsford under emergency conditions, Nov. 25
THE LAST TIME…
- The Canucks won when leading after 1P: Dec. 14/25 at NJD
- The Canucks lost when leading after 1P: Oct. 25/25 vs MTL
- The Canucks lost in OT/SO when leading after 1P: Apr. 12/25 vs MIN
- The Canucks won when leading after 2P: Dec. 6/25 vs MIN
- The Canucks lost when leading after 2P: Dec. 14/25 at NJD
- The Canucks lost in OT/SO when leading after 2P: Nov. 14/25 at CAR
- The Canucks won when trailing after 1P: Dec. 6/25 vs MIN
- The Canucks lost when trailing after 1P: Dec. 8/25 vs DET
- The Canucks lost in OT/SO when trailing after 1P: Nov. 29/25 at LAK
- The Canucks won when trailing after 2P: Nov. 16/25 at TBL
- The Canucks lost when trailing after 2P: Dec. 11/25 vs BUF
- The Canucks lost in OT/SO when trailing after 2P: Mar. 20/25 at STL
- The Canucks won when tied after 1P: Nov. 8/25 vs CBJ
- The Canucks lost when tied after 1P: Dec. 11/25 vs BUF
- The Canucks lost in OT/SO when tied after 1P: Nov. 14/25 at CAR
- The Canucks won when tied after 2P: Nov. 26/25 at ANA
- The Canucks lost when tied after 2P: Nov. 20/25 vs DAL
- The Canucks lost in OT/SO when tied after 2P: Nov. 29/25 at LAK
2025.26 SEASON HIGHS AND LOWS
- Most Goals Scored, Game: 6, Nov. 16/25 at TBL
- Most Goals Scored, Period: 5, Nov. 16/25 at TBL, 3rd period
- Most Goals Allowed, Game: 8, Nov. 17/25 at FLA
- Most Goals Allowed, Period: 5, Nov. 5/25 vs CHI, 3rd period
- Fewest Goals Scored, Game: 0, 2x, Latest Dec. 8/25 vs DET
- Fewest Goals Allowed, Game: 1, Oct. 9/25 vs CGY
- Most PPG Scored, Game: 2, 5x, Latest Dec. 14/25 at NJD
- Most PPG Allowed, Game: 2, 8x, Latest Nov. 28/25 at SJS
- Most SHG Scored, Game: 1, 3x, Latest Nov. 14/25 at CAR
- Most SHG Allowed, Game: 1, 3x, Latest Dec. 5/25 vs UTA
- Most Shots, Game: 45, Nov. 5/25 vs CHI
- Most Shots, Period: 19, 2x, Latest Nov. 5/25 vs CHI, 2nd period
- Most Shots, OT: 3, Oct. 17/25 at CHI
- Fewest Shots, Game: 15, 2x, Latest Nov. 17/25 at FLA
- Fewest Shots, Period: 1, 2x, Latest Dec. 14/25 at NJD, 3rd period
- Fewest Shots, OT: 0, 2x, Latest Nov. 9/25 vs COL
- Most Shots Allowed, Game: 41, 2x, Latest Nov. 26/25 at ANA
- Most Shots Allowed, Period: 18, Nov. 14/25 at CAR, 2nd period
- Most Shots Allowed, OT: 4, Nov. 14/25 at CAR
- Fewest Shots Allowed, Game: 18, 2x, Latest Dec. 5/25 vs UTA
- Fewest Shots Allowed, Period: 2, Dec. 11/25 vs BUF, 3rd period
- Fewest Shots Allowed, OT: 0, Oct. 26/25 vs EDM
- Most Hits, Game: 29, Oct. 13/25 vs STL
- Fewest Hits, Game: 10, Nov. 9/25 vs COL
- Most Blocked Shots, Game: 29, Nov. 14/25 at CAR
- Fewest Blocked Shots, Game: 7, 2x, Latest Dec. 11/25 vs BUF
- Largest Margin of Victory: 4 goals, 2x, Latest Nov. 16/25 at TBL
- Largest Margin of Defeat: 4 goals, 2x, Latest Dec. 8/25 vs DET
- Longest Win Streak: 3 games, Oct. 16-19/25 (3-0-0)
- Longest Point Streak: 3 games, Oct. 16-19/25 (3-0-0)
- Longest Winless Streak: 4 games, Nov. 28-Dec. 5/25 (0-3-1)
- Longest Pointless Streak: 3 games, 2x, Latest Nov. 17-23/25 (0-3-0)
VANCOUVER 2025.26 RECORD WHEN…
- Score 4+ Goals: 9-1-1
- Score 3 Goals or Less: 3-16-2
- Allow 4+ Goals: 1-11-2
- Allow 3 Goals or Less: 11-6-1
- Scoring First: 6-6-1
- Allowing First Goal: 6-11-2
- On 0 Days Rest: 3-1-2
- On 1 Day Rest: 4-11-0
- On 2 Days Rest: 4-5-1
- On 3+ Days Rest: 1-0-0
- Score a PPG: 9-6-2
- Give up a PPG: 8-10-2
- 25 or More Shots on Goal: 7-11-1
- Less than 25 shots: 5-6-2
THREE STARS – DECEMBER
- Pettersson (5 pts)
- Räty (5 pts)
- Tolopilo (5 pts)
- Willander (5 pts)
- Sasson (5 pts)
- Demko (5 pts)
- Buium (5 pts)
NOVEMBER WINNER – Hughes (20 pts)
OCTOBER WINNER – Demko, Sherwood (20 pts)
*5 points are awarded for each Three Stars Selection
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
- Friday, December 19: Vancouver at New York Islanders, 4:00pm PT
- Saturday, December 20: Vancouver at Boston, 4:00pm PT
- Monday, December 22: Vancouver at Philadelphia, 4:30pm PT
- Saturday, December 27: Vancouver vs San Jose, 7:00pm PT
- Monday, December 29: Vancouver at Seattle, 7:00pm PT




