It's no secret that the Canucks want to keep Ryan Kesler. But the other 29 teams in the league want him as well. The Selke nominee becomes a restricted free agent on July 1 and Mike Gillis wants to keep Kesler in the fold, preferably for the foreseeable future... but contract talks haven't gone well and have been put off until the end of the season.
Reports indicate that the Canucks have made a pitch for roughly $4 million per season, but Kurt Overhardt, Kesler's agent, and his camp have cou
Hockey players have always stood out from basketball, football, and to a lesser extent, baseball players because they carry themselves on and off the ice with a certain demeanor. Some call it boring or calculated, while others say they're humble and down-to-earth. Some of the greatest leaders the NHL has ever seen, including Wayne Gretzky, Steve Yzerman, and Bobby Orr, were very soft-spoken players who did more with their stick than their mouths. They were professional and knew their place in th
We're a quarter way through the regular season and like any other NHL season, there's been plenty of surprises, both good and bad. Let's recap.
If you had told me the Flyers would finally unearth a top 15 netminder in Sergei Bobrovsky, they would've been my pick to win the Atlantic. Michael Leighton is skating again but both him and Brian Boucher would find an uphill battle to unseat the Russian netminder with a 12-3-2 record and sixth-ranked .926 SV% for goalies with at least 10 games played
With Ryan Getzlaf healthy and Corey Perry's emergence as the West's best power forward, the Ducks boast one of the league's best duos. What should be concerning is their defense. The Ducks are expecting Brett Festerling, Brendan Mikkelson, Stu Bickell, Luca Sbisa, and perhaps Cam Fowler, if he makes the team, to log consistent NHL-calibre minutes, but if they can't then the Ducks' atrocious 251 GA (fourth-worst in West) could look even uglier. Offense: B, Defense: C+, Goaltending: B-
Other
Like Trevor Gillies and his antics in the Penguins brouhaha, the league's negative headlines have far outweighed the good. Case in point - Sidney Crosby has now missed two months with a concussion and is now unlikely to return this season, and while that topic has dominated Maclean's covers and sparked talk of amending the rulebook in this week's GM meetings, the best story this season has been the playoff race. Never before do I remember such a close race in the West and two such intriguing sto
I wrote last week in my entry "Ups and Downs" that despite what everyone seems to think, this team was not in a slump. To recap, I think a slump is something like what the Kings are going through. The Kings, a team many picked to break out this year given their maturing young stars, finished October with 8 wins and 3 losses, and then kicked off 4 straight wins in December. By no stretch of the imagination was this a fluke - this is a team, after all, with a franchise centre in Anze Kopitar and D
After a 6-2 trouncing of Ottawa, the Canucks continue their eastern swing and face the struggling Leafs in a prime-time match-up Saturday nigth. A convincing win over Pascal Leclaire and the Sens improved the Canucks' road record to 3-4-1, just one game below .500 but compared to the Canucks' home record of 6-0-1, it's like Jekyll and Hyde all over again. Last year, the Canucks had the league's best home record (30 wins, tied first with Washington) but was among the worst on the road among playo
Google "Canucks slump" and you're going to get an avalanche of news reports about how the Canucks have had trouble scoring after being shutout twice in three games prior to last night's game vs. Colorado. Isn't it amazing how the media can just pick this team apart? I'm not absolving myself for ripping into this team once in a while, but when I do it's usually for more pragmatic or philosophical reasons. The only time I would rip into this team is if they don't put in the effort I know they can.
The trade deadline is approaching. It's a little less than a month away, just 27 days left before frantic phone calls are made and triggers pulled too fast. It's my second most favourite NHL-related time of the year, just behind July 1, because I get to whine, complain, yell, laugh, praise, and wonder how close Pierre McGuire can creep up to Darren Dutchyshen before Dutchyshen completely loses it on live TV (I swear it's going to happen someday). It's also a great reason for me to stay home, gl
Christmas for the hockey fan is coming soon. As the deadline approaches, several teams have started to jump the gun. This is the first time I remember deals being completed several weeks before the deadline. Some of the big names have already been moved while I imagine others are waiting for the market to settle down. With Ottawa and Toronto both getting a head start on selling their assets, I don't imagine there will be a lot of big trades on deadline day but that won't stop the TSN crew from r
What an absolutely dominant performance by Canada last night in a 7-3 rout of Russia, the performance we've been looking for since the opening game against the Norwegians. After a close shave against the Jonas Hiller-led scrappy Swiss squad and a disappointing loss against the rough and tumble Americans, the Canadians responded with two convincing wins. The key last night wasn't so much that Mike Babcock completely outcoached Vyacheslav Bykov, or that Alex Ovechkin, Ilya Kovalchuk, Alex Semin, a
For those of you who haven't seen or heard about it yet, last night's game between the Quebec Remparts and Rouyn-Noranda Huskies, former World Junior captain Patrice Cormier was ejected in overtime after a vicious elbow headshot on Mikael Tam. Tam was convulsing on the ice and left the game on a stretcher. He is in stable condition but has suffered a concussion and possibly a broken jaw. Needless to say it could've been much worse.
A word of warning - the video is quite graphic and horrifyin
Identical 4-1 wins over Nashville and Edmonton have suddenly vaulted the Canucks to eighth place, finally in the playoff picture at the turn of the new year. A win over Calgary means Vancouver would be second in the division and four points away from first place Colorado, who are 7-3-0 in their last ten and despite a young and somewhat less talented roster have managed to cling onto the division lead halfway through the season.
I had the opportunity to take in both games (from the lower bowl!
It may have well been the Vancouver Canucks vs. Jaroslav Halak last night. If there was any question of which young goalie La Belle Province liked better, the Slovakian netminder made 45 saves in a 3-2 win. Jacques Martin decided to not start British Columbia native Carey Price amidst rumours of locker room drama, sitting him for the fifth time in their last six games in which the Habs have gone a rather pedestrian 2-2-1. Halak improves to 15-8-2 and is making a strong push to be Slovakia's star
Before we begin anything, first, take a deep breath.
Okay, now we're ready to go.
The game came as advertised, although for Canadians everywhere (or for those who may cheer for Canada) the loss was devastating. It's not the gold medal game, not yet, but it might as well have been. With an electric, playoff-like atmosphere, the US fended off a multi-faceted Canadian attack, who were unable to beat Vezina favourite Ryan Miller, who stopped 42 shots in the win, while at the other end of the
"It's the repetition of affirmation that leads to belief. And once that belief becomes a deep conviction, things begin to happen." - Muhammad Ali.
For the Vancouver Canucks, in their 40th year in the league, there are only four words: "We. Want. The. Cup."
<img src="http://vancouverite.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/kesler.jpg"class="imageFloatLeftFramed">Some wins will come easier than others, but make no mistake, the Canucks are the team to beat in the West. For Cup contenders fa
Was Alex Burrows' goal good or not? It really depends on which team you're rooting for really because even as a die hard fan I thought the call would've gone either way, but because Mike Leggo originally signaled a no-goal, his original call stands.
In the NHL rulebook, Section 5, 39.4 (iv), it clearly states that:
"Puck directed or batted into the net by a hand or foot or deliberately batted with any part of the attacking player's body. With the use of a foot/skate, was a distinct kickin
When I tell people I live and breathe hockey, one of the most common answers I get is: "You like hockey? Really!? It's so barbaric! They fight all the time!"
In a way, it is true. Grown men on skates in post-whistle scrums hacking, pushing, shoving, punching, trash-talking, fighting. What most people don't understand, and most often than not it's because they've had very little exposure to the sport either by watching or playing, is that there is a "hockey code" involved. I once tried to expl
As the date for Steve Yzerman to reveal his team fast approaches, and after a whole two months of countdowns, it is now time to reveal my picks. So without further ado, here it is:
GOALIES
Martin Brodeur
Roberto Luongo
Marc-Andre Fleury
DEFENSEMEN
Scott Niedermayer 'C' - Shea Weber
Chris Pronger 'A' - Dan Boyle
Duncan Keith - Brent Seabrook
Jay Bouwmeester
FORWARDS
Rick Nash - Sidney Crosby - Jarome Iginla 'A'
Patrick Marleau - Joe Thornton - Dany Heatley
Martin St. Louis - Ry
<img src="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/ap/devils%20kovalchuk%20hockey--810173562_v2.rp350x350.jpg"class="imageFloatLeftFramed">Ilya Kovalchuk was all smiles and cracking jokes when he signed a record-breaking 17 year pact with the Devils for $102 million. Even with a declining Martin Brodeur and the future in net uncertain, by signing the Russian sniper the Devils look to remain playoff staples for the next decade.
That all came to a crashing halt today.
Kovalchuk is now stuck in lim
<img src="http://cdn.nhl.com/canucks/images/upload/2009/12/dec0209_canada_rr.jpg" class="imageFloatRightFramed">First, I'd like to thank Derek Jory for inviting me to blog here and share my thoughts about everything hockey, but mostly the Canucks.
Second, I welcome all readers and don't be afraid to comment or provide some feedback. What keeps blogs going are its readers and none of us would be here without your support.
Third, my original blog home is at www.canucks.hockeyanalysis
No one can accuse the Canucks of giving up. The Avs struck quickly, with Matt Duchene and budding power forward Chris Stewart scoring just 28 seconds apart. Duchene added another powerplay marker 13:26 into the first period to give them a 3-0 lead heading into the first intermission. Roberto Luongo, who didn't mince any words about his first period performance, said the intermission was the turning point: "once we got back in the locker room, we said 'just keep playing.' We have the confidence.
For the second straight year, on the same exact day, in the same exact scenario, the Canucks fell flat on their faces. I think if you could point to one determining factor in the series, it was that the Canucks just couldn't match the Blackhawks' drive and talent. Despite Shane O'Brien and Kevin Bieksa stepping up their games, they still couldn't quite match the impact Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook, and even former Canuck Brent Sopel had for their teams. Jonathan Toews' drive to win was unmatched
Another week, another countdown. Expect the races to get heated especially after Steve Yzerman announced that the team will be announced on December 30th, moving it up one day. Brian Burke has announced that he will be picking his Team USA too, as just for kicks I've done so as well.
GOALTENDERS
1 (3) Roberto Luongo, Van (best Canadian goalie this week: 2-0, 1 SO, .970 SV%)
2 (1) Martin Brodeur, NJ (NJ now division leaders with 103rd SO but 5 GA vs. Luongo)
3 (2) Marc-Andre Fleury, Pit (g
Another week and the list continues to get shorter. This final week of scouting and evaluation will be absolutely vital for Olympic hopefuls, especially for bubble players like Drew Doughty, struggling veterans like Brenden Morrow and Shane Doan, and players who have clawed their way into consideration, like Patrice Bergeron.
GOALTENDERS
1 (1) Martin Brodeur, NJ (.887 SV% isn't pretty, but chalk up two more wins for Canada's starter)
2 (3) Marc-Andre Fleury, Pit (3 straight wins over rival
