After expressing disappointment with the effort of some of his players last time out, Vancouver Canucks coach Rick Tocchet is poised to make changes for Game 5 against the Edmonton Oilers.
The struggling Elias Pettersson was moved to right wing at practice on Thursday, with Elias Lindholm at centre and Nils Hoglander on the left side.
Pettersson, who has just one goal and three assists in 10 playoff games, previously was centring a line with Sam Lafferty and Ilya Mikheyev. The latter two and Linus Karlsson were not on the top four lines at practice.
Hoglander did not play the last two games.
“I think puck possession and forechceck is something we’ve talked about where we have to improve on,” Tochhet told reporters. “Maybe there are a couple of changes in here that can help it.
Teddy Blueger replaced Lindholm on another line Thursday with Dakota Joshua and Conor Garland.
Vasily Podkolzin appears set to make his NHL playoff debut as he was on the right side of a line with Phil DiGiuseppe and Nils Aman.
DiGiuseppe did not play the last two games.
Meanwhile, Tocchet reiterated that injured goaltender Thatcher Demko “has improved immensely.” There is still no exact timetable for his return.
The second-round series is tied 2-2. Watch Game 5 on Thursday at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT on Sportsnet or Sportsnet+.
