Hockey News

The Swedish Olympic hockey team’s change was due to an injury and it’s not unusual for this to happen, given the nature of the injury.

Injured Wings forward Johan Franzen was taken off the roster due to a concussion and has been replaced with Gustav Nyquist was given a spot on the roster and the change was officially made Monday.

Nyquist (24) has been a key player of late for the Wings and quite possibly helped him earn a spot for the Sochi Games in Russia.

Washington’s Marcus Johansson and Patrick Hornqvist of the Predators, both have more points than Nyquist this season, were possible potential additions, but changes were made for whatever reason by the Swedes.

Franzen played in the 2010 Olympics.

Other News

John Tortorella seemed to be short in his first public statement since being handed a 15-day suspension and upon returning he stated “I apologize first and foremost to the players, to the organization and to the league and it hasn’t been a great two weeks.”

Tortorella made his return to the Canucks as they faced the Red Wings and in his suspension handed down he wasn’t allowed to have any contact with his team during the suspension.

As for his team’s performance of late, Tortorella was adamant that the Canucks will get better.

“We’re off the rails on a lot of different aspects,” Tortorella said. “Every aspect of our game is off. This team can and will play the right way.

“We had meetings this morning, we have a long list of things we need to improve at. We need to start over on the mental side.”

The Canucks were seventh in the Western Conference are now in eighth spot with just a one-point lead over the Phoenix Coyotes for the Conference’s final wild card playoff spot.

They have lost three in a row and are just 3-7 over their last 10 games.

“We’ve let a lot of teams back into the picture here, we’ve got a job to do and we’re going to face it head on,” Tortorella added.

“We’re in a tough spot right now. It’s up to me to do my job and get this team back.”

The Olympic break will do nothing but help the Canucks re-group and re-focus for the remainder of the season, which could be a long one.