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Rick Tocchet: Canucks ‘not ordering rings’ after demolishing win over Oilers

Griffin Crest / NHL / October 12, 2023

Rick Tocchet: Canucks ‘not ordering rings’ after demolishing win over Oilers

The Vancouver Canucks shocked the world on their opening night for the 2023-24 NHL season. Vancouver demolished the Edmonton Oilers 8-1 in an absolute bloodbath of an outcome, but Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet isn’t celebrating just yet.

Tocchet kept the team on this planet after the blowout 8-1 win.

“Listen, it’s one game,” Tocchet said postgame. “Obviously, everything went our way (Wednesday night), and I’m proud of the guys, but this is a long haul … I heard a couple guys with five minutes left say, and I told you guys, ‘We’re not ordering rings around here.’ It’s one game. … We can feel good about it, but we’ve got to come back to Earth tomorrow.”

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Vancouver rattled home eight goals thanks to the likes of the superstar tandem of Brock Boeser and Swedish sensation Elias Pettersson. Boeser put home four goals in the Canucks season debut. Pettersson, on the other hand, knotted one goal and three helpers on the night.

It wasn’t only scoring that pushed the Canucks past Connor McDavid and Co. Goaltending stood out for the Canucks, as goaltender Thatcher Demko allowed only one goal on 22 shots.

“We’ve come a long way (from last year),” Canucks defenseman Tyler Myers said, according to Sportsnet’s Iain MacIntyre. “Saying that, we know there’s a lot more to go. But we’re in a good place. Just given what’s gone on since the start of September, coming into camp, and the way guys were preparing, it was nice to have (the) game go the way it did. We need to make sure we keep striving for a higher level.”

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“I think we know we need to enjoy (the game) and then move on,” J.T. Miller, a Canucks center, said. “It’s nice to get off on the right foot after what happened last year, especially to come off with a lead and then (have them) come back on us a couple times in Edmonton–it felt good.”

Rick Tocchet and the rest of the Canucks are set to play their second game of the season on Saturday, Oct. 14, in a rematch against the Oilers.

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