It was a winning road trip for the Vancouver Canucks even if it didn’t feel that way.

Most times on a five-game trip, if the visiting team’s travel record is 3-1 heading into the last stop on the tour, that final game feels like a bonus. Win and it’s a superb trip. Lose and it’s still a successful one with six points out of 10. Go .600 on the road all season and you’d need to be putrid at home not to make the National Hockey League playoffs.

Normally, you take 3-2-0 in a heartbeat. Get home, rest up and use your own rink to your advantage.

The problem for the Canucks is that Thursday’s travel finale, which they lost 2-1 to the struggling Nashville Predators, looked at least as winnable as the back-to-back home games Vancouver has this weekend against the Montreal Canadiens and Edmonton

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