Hurricanes 5 Canucks 3
Entry posted by Unsung Hero
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I'm new at this, so bear with me and feel free to pull your punches at first. My objective with this blog is to share observations, opinions and thoughts on the Canucks that you might not get elsewhere. I'll try to point out that unnoticed play in the game that ended up pivotal or significant. I'll try to recognize the 'Nucks that are quietly contributing, improving their game or perhaps getting away with things they shouldn't. I'll also name an Unsung Hero for every game. That may be the player that did the little things right to help lead the team to victory, or the player that had a strong game, despite a Canuck loss. My Unsung Hero won't necessarily show up in the Three Stars or even on the scoresheet but he'll be someone who may deserve credit that he might not otherwise get.
For today's game against the 'Canes, my Unsung Hero is Alex Burrows. This choice may be more obvious than other selections I'll make. Of course Burrows' incredible hand-eye coordination on the goal that brought the 'Nucks within one, was huge. Also potentially huge was his getting his face in front of a puck and making it look like he was hit by a Carolina stick. Though Alex often does a good sell job to draw a penalty, I'm not saying that was the case here. I think he reacted naturally to the rubber bouncing off his mug. The ref can take credit for the call -- had the Canucks tied it, my temptation would've been to make the ref the Unsung Hero. I'm also picking Burrows because it seemed to be him and the Twins that breathed some life into the Canucks' game with their efforts in the 3rd Period. And since he's not on the PP, once again, he can't be blamed for the Canucks anemic power play on the day -- which is fortunately exceptional this season. Some other random observations:
- Apparently John Shorthouse thought Lukas Krajicek was back with the Canucks this morning. He twice called his name early in the first. The second time he was referring to Erhoff who I believe wears the same number as Krajicek did. The first time I think Mitchell and Bieksa were on so I don't know what he was seeing. It was funny mainly because it was un-Shorty like. I think it was also analogous to how the Canucks were at that point: unprepared and careless. The early game seemed to throw off the Sportsnet crew, too, as they started to go to commercial at one point in the 3rd while the Canucks were rushing up the ice.
- What's wrong with Samuelsson? He looked so poised and potent early in the season. Today when he was around the puck it was like he was trying to handle a wet bar of soap. I think it was in the 2nd when he was on a 2-on-1 with Daniel and it looked like Sedin had no inclination to dish it to Samuelsson, which was probably the right instinct with the way he's playing.
- Shane O'Brien actually looks remarkably steady since his extended stay in the press box. That's good to see, as many were hoping he would build on the bit of promise he showed last year, and not take a step back, as he looked to have earlier this year. It seems like someone's told Shane to keep it simple, stupid.
I think that's all I got for this one. The game was a little too early for me, too.
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