Thomas Vanek scratched again -- and neither player nor coach are happy

Veteran Thomas Vanek was scratched for a third game in a row.

"I'm not going to lie. Obviously I'm not happy about it," Vanek said. "It's a team sport, guys are going to be in and out and I'm not going to complain about it. … [Torchetti's] got his guys he trusts, so I think once I get back in there, just to play well and that's about it."

Torchetti wants more effort, battle and a "two-way game" from Vanek. Asked if he senses Vanek's frustration, Torchetti said, "[Jason Zucker] was the same way [when recently scratched two games]. That's it. Zucks waited his turn. Thomas will get his turn, and he'll do a good job when he gets back in.

"I'm not happy that I haven't got Vanek to play at the level that I think he can play at. When you can get players like that to play to their full potential, it just makes your team greater."

Earlier this week, Vanek said: "I think at this point there's no need to talk. We're trying to win games, and if that's what he thinks is the best lineup, I've got to respect that. Am I happy about it? Of course not. I still feel like I can make a difference in this league.

"It's obviously been a tough year, but at the end of the day it's tough to score goals, and I've got 18 of them, which is not where I would like to be. But it is what it is. I'm not going to get frustrated here or be negative. I'll just work hard and wait for my chance to get back in and to make a difference."

You can read that full report here.