DUCKS (18-12-7) at CANUCKS (15-18-3)
10 p.m. ET; SNP, FS-W, NHL.TV
Ducks team scope
The Anaheim Ducks conclude a travel-heavy December in the same place they started, at Rogers Arena against the Vancouver Canucks. From their Dec. 1 victory in Vancouver to their month-ending return, Anaheim played 11 of 15 games on the road and traveled 8,617 miles. That includes flying into Vancouver after ending a three-game losing streak with a 3-1 win at the Calgary Flames on Thursday. The Ducks are home for their first five games in January. They didn't have a morning skate, but goalie Jonathan Bernier is expected to start after John Gibson, who has started three straight, made 31 saves against the Flames. Bernier has allowed nine goals in his past two games but the Ducks have split back-to-back starts when their two goalies have been healthy. The Ducks will be without defenseman Sami Vatanen, who did not make the two-game road trip because of an illness and will miss his third straight game. Brandon Montour, who has 21 points in 25 games with San Diego of the American Hockey League, made his NHL debut in place of Vatanen on Thursday. He had one shot on goal in 17:54 of ice time. The Ducks are 2-0-0 against the Canucks this season and 8-1-2 in their past 11 games in Vancouver.
Canucks team scope
The Canucks need to get on a roll to have any hope of qualifying for the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and winning consecutive games in regulation for the first time this season would be a good start. "We need to put a string of wins together," center Bo Horvat said. "I know we have been saying that for a long time." They are coming off a 2-1 win against the Los Angeles Kings on Wednesday but have won consecutive games once since starting the season with four straight wins, the first three of which included one shootout win and two victories in overtime. Coach Willie Desjardins will continue to split defensemen Alexander Edler, who returned against the Kings after missing 13 games because of a broken finger, and Christopher Tanev. The Canucks are 5-2-1 in eight games with their top two defensemen healthy this season, but the game against the Kings was their first one on different pairs. "When you have one really dominant line maybe you go back to them as a shutdown pair," Desjardins said. "But teams we're playing now always have two lines." Forward Alexandre Burrows will play his 800th NHL game, becoming the third active player to reach the milestone without being drafted. Burrows remembers his first game in the ECHL, where he spent parts of three seasons before making his Canucks debut in 2005-06. "It was in Greenville, South Carolina, for the Grrrowl with three Rs," Burrows said. "I was probably a fourth liner in the ECHL, just trying to make it there."
Ducks projected lineup
Andrew Cogliano -- Ryan Kesler -- Jakob Silfverberg
Nick Ritchie -- Ryan Getzlaf -- Ondrej Kase
Rickard Rakell -- Antoine Vermette -- Corey Perry
Joseph Cramarossa -- Logan Shaw -- Jared Boll
Cam Fowler -- Brandon Montour
Hampus Lindholm -- Josh Manson
Korbinian Holzer -- Kevin Bieksa
Jonathan Bernier
John Gibson
Scratched: Shea Theodore
Injured: Nate Thompson (Achilles), Simon Despres (concussion symptoms), Clayton Stoner (lower body), Sami Vatanen (illness)
Canucks projected lineup
Daniel Sedin -- Henrik Sedin -- Jayson Megna
Markus Granlund -- Brandon Sutter -- Loui Eriksson
Sven Baertschi -- Bo Horvat -- Alexandre Burrows
Brendan Gaunce -- Michael Chaput -- Jack Skille
Alexander Edler -- Troy Stecher
Luca Sbisa -- Christopher Tanev
Scratched: Anton Rodin, Alex Biega, Andrey Pedan
Injured: Jannik Hansen (knee), Erik Gudbranson (wrist surgery), Derek Dorsett (neck surgery), Philip Larsen (concussion)
Status report
Miller will make his second straight start, with Markstrom expected to play at the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday. Megna will play his second straight game on the top line. "He brought a lot of speed to our line and can make plays too," Daniel Sedin said. "That's what we need him to do, be good 1-on-1 and try to beat guys and that opens up a lot for us."
Who's hot
Silfverberg has scored a goal in three straight games. Kesler, who leads the Ducks with 31 points, has three assists in his past two games. Vermette has one goal and three assists during a three-game point streak.
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