Time: 10:00 PM EDT Venue: Rogers Arena, Vancouver, BC, Canada, V6B 6G1 / The Vancouver Canucks will be without starting goaltender Jacob Markstrom when they play host to the Detroit Red Wings on Tuesday night. Markstrom, who is 2-2-0 with a 2.23 goals-against average and a .926 save percentage, is attending to a family matter. He made 30 saves Saturday in a 3-2 shootout victory against the visiting Philadelphia Flyers." Jacob has been granted a leave of absence to attend to a family matter and is expected to re-join the Canucks on the road this weekend," Canucks general manager Jim Benning said in a news release Monday morning. "We will not have any further comment." Backup goalie Thatcher Demko is expected to make his first start of the season against the Red Wings, and Zane McIntyre was recalled from Utica of the American Hockey League to fill Markstrom's roster spot. Last season, Demko appeared in nine NHL games and went 4-3-1 with a 2.81 GAA. He sustained a concussion in a preseason practice in 2018 and missed the first two months of the 2018-19 season. When he returned, he sprained a knee ligament in warmups before a Feb. 5 game in Philadelphia." Everybody is going to face that kind of stuff, and that was the first time I've really been hurt, and it takes a lot of maturity to stay confident," Demko told the Vancouver Sun. "But it definitely helped me grow a lot. You can't let injuries hinder you and some things happened to me and I can't let that take me off my path. It's a marathon and not a sprint." I'm excited for the year and feel confident with the way the year ended in just kind of getting my game up to this level." The Canucks will be wrapping up a three-game homestand. They defeated the Los Angeles Kings 8-2 on Wednesday in their home opener before beating the Flyers." Grit and grind ... it was a lot of battles out there, and I'm happy we got a win," Vancouver forward Elias Pettersson said after the Saturday game. The Red Wings, who are beginning a three-game Western Canada trip, are coming off a 5-2 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday. Detroit's fourth line scored both goals, with Jacob de la Rose and Darren Helm tallying and Justin Abdelkader getting two assists." I think everybody is buying into who we are and what we need to do to be successful as a line," said de la Rose, who also assisted on Helm's goal. "We're not the most skilled guys on the team, but if we play the right way, we're going to get chances." Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill praised his fourth line." They've had three games in a row where they've been big, strong, heavy, created scoring chances," Blashill said. "I think they've been a real good line for us the last little bit, and I think they can continue to be." Now you got a line with (Dylan) Larkin that's really clicking, you got a line with de la Rose, Helm and 'Abby' that's clicking. We need to keep finding chemistry on the other lines." --Field Level Media
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